Make melee unable to enter challenges

[Clayness]

Letting melee into challenges is a cruel joke. If you're lucky enough to find a group that even lets you come along on a melee. Every challenge requires that you split up. Why bother with a melee that would need a healer, if you could just.. get another caster.

[toun]

I have soloed many challenges. I have a set of the epic weapons (Mournlode club, calomel falchion, elemental greataxe of fire) on my DPS-spec low ac hireling. I have level 8,12,16,20 versions of several items (boots, cloak, bracers). I'm not an uber powergamer - I've been playing about 8 months total.

It is not that hard to solo. At first they seemed very difficult, and I read with scepticism how "Q&A has succesfully soloed the challenges."

The problem with the challenges is the scaling in large groups can make monsters very difficult when you split up. This is true whether I play my charisma bard (12 currently), my paladin (20), or my wizard (16). Hirelings are even a liability imo - I suspect they are increasing the frequency of monster attacks, thought I have not tallied.

Anyway, they can all be soloed as melees, but you probably do not want to melee that big ol red snake girl. Throw a dagger to get her attention, and just kite her around as the kobolds do their thing.

I am sure a well-tailored group of 2-3 people is probably optimal for most of them. The problem with groups is I would only run with people I know for these - they are somewhat difficult to teach properly unless all the other person is doing is following behind your butt, which IMO is a waste of time. These challenges boil down to being RTS-like where the real resource is time - you choose your attention at any given time will net you the best results. I find this hard to teach or explain - you can however bring people to make them familiar with what type of mob (so they use appropriate weaponry/spells), recognize the usual circle of power / mob spawn areas, and learn the map a little bit.

[Lence]

Melees are fine in challenges.

And you are correct, hirlings to seem to affect the difficulty of the challenge, but not as much as another player....seems more likly to be close to 1/2 that of a real player.

More people in a challenge = harder.

I have solo'd challenges with a monk, pali, ranger, wiz, arti, fvs, etc. Not much of a difference really except at higher lvls when a caster can drop insta-kills on mobs...but they are not impossible for melee.

[Kinerd]

It can't be argued that melee can solo challenges and contribute in groups.
It also can't be argued that they are worse at both than equally well built casters.

So while the OP is hyperbolic, the underlying causes of that frustration should be addressed. The challenges aren't unique in this, but they are dramatic illustrations.

[LeLoric]

It can't be argued that melee can solo challenges and contribute in groups.
It also can't be argued that they are worse at both than equally well built casters.

So while the OP is hyperbolic, the underlying causes of that frustration should be addressed. The challenges aren't unique in this, but they are dramatic illustrations.

Because of scaling based on class it can be argued that many of the challenges are better run solo on a melee.

I know that my extremely well built and geared wizard can't get as many ingredients in about half the challenges on epic difficulty as either my ranger or my rogue both also very well geared.

My wizzie has to eat through almost double the hitpoints and often one more mob per spawn group than either of the others.

[Kinerd]

I have not had the same experience. Must be Empower.

[iHealZergs]

Funny, I distinctly remember soloing circles of power on my 9th level barbarian 7 times out of 8 yesterday. If the OP is talking about trying for 6-star runs that's one thing, but farming quick and messy solo completions for the base xp is no harder (with certain challenges, at least) than on any class.

[FranOhmsford]

Are any of the casters soloing these challenges doing so without the aid of ConcOpp / Torc?

God knows I get through spell points quickly in ordinary quests but in the challenges I really don't stand a chance of killing more than a coupla mobs before going OoM.

Yes a minor exaggeration but I'm sure you get what I'm saying - Spell Points are finite - The challenges aren't exactly replete with shrines - A DV hire will only get you so far and will prob die anyway.

Frankly I'm sure casters {those without ConcOpp or super hard to get Torcs} have just as hard a time as your average melee.
Oh and the top melee have just as easy a time as your fully geared casters.

[Quarterling]

I solo just fine on my lvl 20 rogue. Usually I get a hireling though and park him or her at the entrance so that when enemies start coming (for kobold crystal challenges), the hireling will usually draw the aggro and give me some extra time to get back to the start and kill off the enemies.

[wax_on_wax_off]

Ive almost exclusively with a sorc and have to be very careful to stick to SLA's as much as possible (web and ice storm often make an appearance as well).

Using this strategy I've unlocked artificer. SP is tight for a no torc, no conc Opp caster but it is manageable.

2-4 people is best IMO depending the challenge (and what I usually did).

One of the best challenge runners I know played the challenges on his monk. Equally barbarians, rangers and acrobat rogues have a distinct advantage in many challenges - movement speed; something I'm sorely missing on my water savant.

Straight DPS, no tactics fighter on the other hand? Far from ideal.

To something else in the OP - just because youre a melee class it doesn't mean that you can't be self sufficient. Silver Flame pots, UMD and dilettante feats can go a long way to making a character more viable in content that encourages self sufficiency.

[Havok.cry]

I solo all the challenges for mats easily on my archer. Extraplanar mining however has been easiest on my acrobat. My barb does kobold island solo all the time. Melees can run them just fine.

[grodon9999]

Self-healing melees and "specialists" are fine in the many of the challenges. SP sponges aren't, it's just the reality of it.