Top melee DPS / Solo friendly

[anhell]

Hi, im new to the game and i need some advice.

I have a lvl 8 cleric and its fun, but i realise that i enjoy more the melee part that than the caster part so i wanna try some pure melee dps but i want to do end game quest alone elite if posible but im good with hard. which build should i use? ... im more interested in twf than thw and constant dps over burst, but if its a solid build i could change my mind about it.

i have 32 points unlocked.

PD: sorry for my english but its not my first language.

PD2: noob question. Halfelf race. i notice no one use this one, its really bad or its a new add? cause its never used in any build, just curious.

[SetofBs]

Melees have a hard time soloing end game stuff on hard or elite. Unless you are an amazing player willing to grind all the best gear, that goal is too lofty, IMO.

The best soloing melee are monks I think. Coincidentally, half elf is one of the best choices for a monk (usually rogue dilettante). I'm not sure why you think no builds use half elf though, its become fairly popular. Many builds make good use of the dilettante feats, such as bards or FVS taking Pally dilly.

[anhell]

dunno just checking random stuff that seems interesting and until now i didnt see any build with half elf... maybe cause they are not used in what i m looking for...

Well, pls just tell me a dps melee solo friendly that i can use in normal, im going to do grouping later just wanna solo sometimes but i have np with partys. Just need to know some builds to experiment and ill do hard elites alone until i reach the cap, then ill go grouping.

[cebridges]

palladin.

[LOOON375]

Take a hireling cleric with you as a heal bot and you can solo most content in game with a melee toon. I have done most of the content this way with rogues, a fighter, and a barb. To truly "solo" without a hireling, you would spend an untold amount of plat on healing potions. Not worth it if that is your intent.

[Kinerd]

As you are new to the game, here is my advice to you:

Partying in DDO is much, much more fun than soloing. Almost every quest in the game is strongly biased towards grouping, some to the point where they are literally impossible to complete alone.

Here is my recommended build (which is really too grandiose a word for it) for you:

Dwarf Barbarian
18 Str (all 5 level-ups here)
8 Dex
20 Con
8 Int
8 Wis
6 Cha

Feats
THF
Power Attack
Cleave
Improved Critical: Slash
Toughness
Improved THF
Greater THF

Enhancements
Get all three tiers of Frenzied Berserker. Enhancements are trivially easy to reset and outside of your PrE will have very little impact on your barbarian's functionality - experiment as you like.

[laeris]

imho Barbarian's are very intensive for soloing due to self-saccing with frenzy activations and procs.

I think a mixed bag Ranger is your best bet for self-sustainable survivability.. take some metamagic feats, enhancements into ranger healing and play carefully .. but this option is definitely not 'top dps'

HELF is awesome, it just had the misfortune of being introduced in conjunction with HORC. Some builds like Helves Angel (Darkstar) really make HELF shine. Not a bad option btw; Cleric dilli will give you alot of versatility when it comes to looking after yourself (95% heal scrolls are sweet, but not something you can rely on to save you in a pickle)

As a few have said, this game really is alot more fun when you play in a party/group, but the decision is yours gl

[KyrzaBladedancer]

Barbs or Fighters can be good at pseudo-soloing with a cleric hireling if you are careful but in the tough pinches most of the time that hireling will end up dead with you along with it a few seconds later.

I agree with Laeris, A well built ranger or paladin would probably be your best bet, and while you may not be top DPS once you start to run raids and epics you won't be a slouch either. Look up something like the Exploiter, while old, still does pretty much everything you need. Switch a feat or two to pick up maximize and quicken and a little heal amp, and your cure serious starts to hit for 100, even if it does get a little pricey on the mana. Or stick to the build exactly and go more of an AC route.

/EDIT
Something else that would be helpful to know is if you have Monk/HElf/FvS/or WF or if you are VIP. Gives use more of an idea of what we can point you to with out you having to come back and say you don't have this or that.

[Malky]

vampirism + healing amp may also provide a nice soloability, this usually imply a minimum of 3 monk levels for fist of light.

[laeris]

Possibly. You'll definitely want to incorporate HELF for Cleric Dili and Heal Amp.

Monk (Light, Dex Finesse/Wisdom) would be good

Paladin... maybe 18P/2Ro (UMD, Evasion with great saves, some degree of self healing)

Ranger, Exploiter might fit the bill as Jyrja said..


If you go either P or Ra you'll need to take a meta or two , but they will both do what you want

[anhell]

im vip. i have everything but fvs, and as i never played the orgiginal dd so i dont know if i wanna unlock it, its like a cleric + sorc stuff? can melee too? i have plenty of points from my vip unexpended. thank u all for the advice, may i ask for a pala build twf-kopesh? i saw a movie of one of them soloing and was amazing :O. i started a barb with kin build and worked, (lvl 4) i wanna try pal to same lvl and compare, cause with spells the gameplay of the pala is supposed to change right?

EDIT;I was thinking i saw it, looks cool and solo capable, but maybe the guy was just too well equipment, what de u ppl say. compatible build with what im looking for? if not ill accept any pala build that u can give me

[Kinerd]

imho Barbarian's are very intensive for soloing due to self-saccing with frenzy activations and procs.

Going from soloing on a monk to soloing on a barb (with hirelings in each case), I can honestly say I barely noticed it. I definitely noticed all those traps I used to wander blithely through, but the self-damage wasn't an issue at all.

[Kinerd]

im vip. i have everything but fvs, and as i never played the orgiginal dd so i dont know if i wanna unlock it, its like a cleric + sorc stuff? can melee too? i have plenty of points from my vip unexpended. thank u all for the advice, may i ask for a pala build twf-kopesh? i saw a movie of one of them soloing and was amazing :O. i started a barb with kin build and worked, (lvl 4) i wanna try pal to same lvl and compare, cause with spells the gameplay of the pala is supposed to change right?

EDIT;I was thinking i saw it, looks cool and solo capable, but maybe the guy was just too well equipment, what de u ppl say. compatible build with what im looking for? if not ill accept any pala build that u can give me

Glad you like it. Paladin gameplay is dramatically different not only because of spells but from allllll the activated abilities you have. A paladin hits more keys in 10 seconds than a barbarian might hit in a whole quest at level 4. The other thing is that in early levels THF is dramatically more powerful than TWF. I'm just saying level 4 might not be the best point to make a comparison, both builds can be fun in their own ways.

Here's a way you could go with a 32 point TWF paladin:

Human Paladin
14 Str (all 5 level-ups here)
16 Dex
14 Con
8 Int
8 Wis
14 Cha

Feats
TWF & Toughness
Power Attack
Maximize
Improved Critical: Slashing for scimitars, or Piercing for rapiers
Improved TWF
Greater TWF
Open slot: if you find you want more to-hit, OTWF; more HP, another Toughness, etc.

You could also go with Exotic Weapon Prof: Khopesh, which you could throw in your level 3 slot and delay Power Attack. Khopeshes are pricey, pricey, pricey, and paladins lose less than any other class by not having them, so for an experimental paladin I wouldn't bother with it right off the bat. You can always change your feats later, or LR, or TR... you have options. Also, you will need at least a +1 tome before you take ITWF/GTWF, which is why they are somewhat delayed in this plan.

Enhancements
Unlike barbarians, paladins live and die on their enhancements, and have a heck of time getting everything they want. You also have two PrEs that could work for you: Knight of the Chalice for DPS or Hunter of the Dead which is outstanding for soloability/survivability but does pretty much nothing in a group environment. At least one rank of Divine Sacrifice is a must, you will wear out the key you have it hotbarred on. Divine Might is awesome. Smite enhancements are good but not great. Lay on Handses are stupendous. Paladin Devotion is key to pumping up your self-heals, as is your Human Healing Amp.

Skills
As mentioned, your spells are important. Having at least some Concentration is important. As a human, you have 2 skills a level to work with: I strongly urge you to put into Concentration. You will eventually reach the point where raw Concentration won't be enough, but between your Constitution and skill points you'll be ok for awhile.

For much, much, much more detail, consult Junts' guide to paladins.

[Alternative]

palladin.

what's that, an Alladin + Paladin hybrid?

[anhell]

Glad you like it. Paladin gameplay is dramatically different not only because of spells but from allllll the activated abilities you have. A paladin hits more keys in 10 seconds than a barbarian might hit in a whole quest at level 4. The other thing is that in early levels THF is dramatically more powerful than TWF. I'm just saying level 4 might not be the best point to make a comparison, both builds can be fun in their own ways.

Here's a way you could go with a 32 point TWF paladin:

Human Paladin
14 Str (all 5 level-ups here)
16 Dex
14 Con
8 Int
8 Wis
14 Cha

Feats
TWF & Toughness
Power Attack
Maximize
Improved Critical: Slashing for scimitars, or Piercing for rapiers
Improved TWF
Greater TWF
Open slot: if you find you want more to-hit, OTWF; more HP, another Toughness, etc.

You could also go with Exotic Weapon Prof: Khopesh, which you could throw in your level 3 slot and delay Power Attack. Khopeshes are pricey, pricey, pricey, and paladins lose less than any other class by not having them, so for an experimental paladin I wouldn't bother with it right off the bat. You can always change your feats later, or LR, or TR... you have options. Also, you will need at least a +1 tome before you take ITWF/GTWF, which is why they are somewhat delayed in this plan.

Enhancements
Unlike barbarians, paladins live and die on their enhancements, and have a heck of time getting everything they want. You also have two PrEs that could work for you: Knight of the Chalice for DPS or Hunter of the Dead which is outstanding for soloability/survivability but does pretty much nothing in a group environment. At least one rank of Divine Sacrifice is a must, you will wear out the key you have it hotbarred on. Divine Might is awesome. Smite enhancements are good but not great. Lay on Handses are stupendous. Paladin Devotion is key to pumping up your self-heals, as is your Human Healing Amp.

Skills
As mentioned, your spells are important. Having at least some Concentration is important. As a human, you have 2 skills a level to work with: I strongly urge you to put into Concentration. You will eventually reach the point where raw Concentration won't be enough, but between your Constitution and skill points you'll be ok for awhile.

For much, much, much more detail, consult Junts' guide to paladins.

Thank You Kinerd. Rly aprreciate the info, i think for your reply that i will enjoy more the pala way cause im more a clicky person 2 skills all my life its not for me.

EDIT/ Kined one question, thats a 28P build? what should i use rest? str? i think it is so ill try with that XD

[Horkrux]

This build im going to propose to you will probably not be very effective in epics/some raids but will be able to fulfil the roles you want to..

12 cleric/6 pally/ 2monk/rogue (depending on if you have the monk class)

12 cleric allows for good healing, and radiant aura. pally allows for nice self healing dps boost, and some nice dps clickies/Lay on hands (more healing) 2 monk will give you wisdom AC bonus (clerics primary stat)/evasion. Rogues give UMD for even more self healing via heal scrolls/possibility of traps.


Feat list would like like:
toughness
twf chain
emp heal
maximise
mental toughness <--more sp = more heals so on a build like this would want it.
CE <-- could fit in some good ac with out intense gear. mid or low 60's with self buffs more then likely.
khopesh prof.

could use khopesh for more damage or could use wraps or longswords and stay in fire/wind stance.

human/helf
stats would be something like :
str:14
dex:15
con:14
wis: 16
cha:10


I believe those stats are right i dont have a char planner with me how ever i think thats 32 point. tell me if im wrong.

[Therigar]

Half-elf is relatively new. It has a racial characteristic called dilettante that lets you use some of the abilities of another character class without needing to splash. For a person who plans to solo a lot of content, especially end-game quests on hard or elite, it might be a good choice.

Two character classes come to mind that seem more likely to succeed with your goal than others. One is ranger using something like the exploiter build. Because soloing often means going slower and using different tactics, adjusting the build to take advantage of the arcane archer PrE could give added flexibility.

The other class that seems able to meet your desire is monk. The ability to combine good AC on all quest settings, gain DR/epic at L20 and exceptional saving throws makes this a good choice for a good player.

Either of these class choices with a half-elf dilettante in support could prove able to solo most high-end content.

[IBCROOTBEER]

For solo I would recommend a finess dex/wis monk if you have monk available, go human and use your extra feat to get Skill focus: UMD so you can UMD shield and blur wands ... if you don't mind waiting for GS to become more solo friendly, you could also go a finess rogue build and build yourself a radII weapon so that you can get decent AC and still gain your sneak attacks ... your real problems are going to be bosses in some of the higher level quests ... trash shouldn't be a problem, but AC doesn't always mean very much at higher levels ...however, any character can be self sufficient as long as you don't mind moving slow and pausing to drink your HP pots