Tips - please add yours...

[k1ngp1n]

If you let me in your party, just accept that you won't be getting your Survival bonus.

[Zorth]

I disagree with melee using silver flame pots, they are for soloing only since zerging this game has become the norm.

My Tip is: Put our health bar to the right or left of our characters heads, so we can see it at all times.

[rest]

Yeah cuz theres nothing else in this game that causes stat damage......

Mummy rot
Ray of Enfeeb
Waves of Exhaustion
Vast array of poisons and diseases that DDO likes to hit us with now (though mostly we make our saves)
Mind Flayers
Beholders (once your SF pendant etc...are used up)
Undeads of various sorts
Neg Levels
Standing in tainted water
Looking at Marlith with unseemly thoughts
Looking as Succubii with seemly thoughts (the rare failed Int save)
Etc.....

I will tell you I cannot recall ever being helpless after drinking a SF pot on any of the toons I run who drink a lot of SF pots. Maybe you just have bad luck, or maybe you have poor judgement on when to use them.

[moops]

Stop using FVS hirelings.

Many Cleric hirelings come with 20 DVS...much cheaper than one or two major pots.

If I'm soling or shortmanning an sp intensive quest, I'll park one at the door. While leveling this life, I was surpside at how many casters I saw pull out an FVS and park them at the door.

Also if you are just a Melee and insist on having a hireling, a Bard hireling can heal you and give you awesome songs!

[Munkenmo]

but there's an fvs hireling that can cast fom.

[DanteEnFuego]

Buy low, sell high...

[danotmano1998]

Many Cleric hirelings come with 20 DVS...much cheaper than one or two major pots.

Exactly. I like to think of them as my walking energizers when I have a blue bar.

[ZeebaNeighba]

Sorry maybe it wasn't clear - I don't say not to use them. Yes every melee should get them - especially now that you don't need to do Abbot to get them. BUT be wary of when you use them. They are either for Oh S$%t moments OR when you are fully aware of how a quest is going to go and how you will manage the incoming damage. SF pots are part of an overall package of self reliance - not the end all.

Few melee's can chug two in a row without being incapable of any other action. So you need to be wary of how/when you use them. Say Elite ETK - if you are getting spike damage of 300hp+ per shot from the living spells - chugging an SF pot isn't going to win the day IF that is your only form of available healing. Chugging one to keep you up until the Cleric gets rezzed or until you can get back in LOS yeah sure but don't go into ETK soloing and expect to win if SF pots are your 'solution'. (Evasion/PRR/Saves/FR/Fire Absorp/Prot elements etc...are all more important to your potential survival in this case).

If you already chugged one SF pot, you already have your penalty, so popping one more off as soon as it's off cooldown will only give you 3 more seconds on the debuff. If you were comfortable with a 30 second debuff just three seconds ago, it would be odd to reject the same heal for only 3 more seconds of debuff (assuming you need another heal of course).

but there's an fvs hireling that can cast fom.

And a level 11 fighter with dimension door.

Right click on your spells to adjust your metamagics. It took me like 8 months before I ever learned this, many people I have come across have not, and it helps so much with saving your SP. Like, with quicken, it's so useful to have the strongest heals on your hotbar quickened for when you need it (typically, you're in an emergency, so you'll probably want maximize/empower/empower heal stacked on it too) and some that are with less metamagics for efficiency (remember you can drag your strongest heal again to a 2nd slot on your hotbar, with more efficient metamagic settings). Similarly you can turn metas like quicken off for buffs, maximize/empower for weak offensive spells you use for other effects (like soundburst), etc. And still be able to use the metamagics when you really want them. I cry a little inside when I see a cleric casting quickened buffs.

[Spoonwelder]

I will tell you I cannot recall ever being helpless after drinking a SF pot on any of the toons I run who drink a lot of SF pots. Maybe you just have bad luck, or maybe you have poor judgement on when to use them.

That was my point - you can't just chug them willy nilly. There are many times/places etc....when you shouldn't.

My problem on one character was he had a 10 in Cha, no slots available to bump it up without sacrificing something - with Ship buffs he was at 12 - so no prob....unless I died or got some kind of debuff. Yeah he was a bit gimpy (well actually he was quite good but SF pots were something I had to be careful with ....ie where I learned you can't just chug em willy nilly) but I had so many stats and other things to cover that I had a real hard time slotting in a Cha stat item and if you mistakenly go helpless chugging pots you can't swap gear (if I remember the time it happened to me properly - either that or I forgot to bring a cha item due to overall dumbidity but I think it was the former). Anyway - I was in a PUG - healer was busy (or just bad at it) but I saw I was low and rather than jump around avoiding dmg I chug my SF pot forgetting I had died once already. Oops - stand around looking like a dork much....so I learned to be wary of SF pots - that is all.

[Spoonwelder]

If you already chugged one SF pot, you already have your penalty, so popping one more off as soon as it's off cooldown will only give you 3 more seconds on the debuff. If you were comfortable with a 30 second debuff just three seconds ago, it would be odd to reject the same heal for only 3 more seconds of debuff (assuming you need another heal of course).And a level 11 fighter with dimension door.

Not just 3 more seconds up to 29 more seconds if absolutely required - chain chugging fine 3sec diff....but the point is more chugging one in the first place you should be wary of as if you need to then things are going pear shaped and may only get worse if you chug one.

Alternately you know exactly what you are doing and chugging SF pots is all part of the plan. Either you have thought it out first OR you should think it out first. My point exactly.

[Spoonwelder]

Stop using FVS hirelings.

Many Cleric hirelings come with 20 DVS...much cheaper than one or two major pots.

If I'm soling or shortmanning an sp intensive quest, I'll park one at the door. While leveling this life, I was surpside at how many casters I saw pull out an FVS and park them at the door.

Also if you are just a Melee and insist on having a hireling, a Bard hireling can heal you and give you awesome songs!

Larafay can almost let you pike a quest. Other than that though yes - take a cleric with DVs - even if you are a melee but have another bluebar in your quest.

Natasha along can give you almost 500sp. In fact if you are in a real bind - bring two - one with you - then dismiss/DDoor and pop a different one for more DVs.

[Spoonwelder]

And a level 11 fighter with dimension door.

Mike the Knight (aka Mikael the Pious)

He's awesome for Missing - carry Mike the Knight and Larafay on a melee - Pop mike - lock him - invis/zerg the quest - get to last book - call mike Ddoor - dismiss Mike so he can go pray - Call in Larafay - kill the crazy's - invis to beholder.....boom goes the dynamite - almost as fast as you can on an arcane.

[Orangine]

1. Don't let your high level guild inflates your ego to the point that you become a deep sociopath.

2. If you are a newbie and you play a melee character, then you should reroll as an arcane caster.
Wizard and sorc are the easiest class to play in the game and their self-healing abilities are a great advantage
considering that 95% of LFMs specifies BYOH ( self-heal ) these days.

3. If you play a divine caster and you don't consider yourself as a healer and therefore don't heal people, make sure you are still a bit useful in the group.

4. When you post a LFM that specifies « being picky », make sure the difficulty of the quest is worth being picky.

5. If you want to improve your skills and increase your knowledge, try running with pugs.

6. Hirelings are good if you learn to use them properly.

7. Before you give orders to the party, make sure you know the quest well and you are not the party leader, unless he is afk or he requested your help.

[Kulothar]

Stop using FVS hirelings.

Many Cleric hirelings come with 20 DVS...much cheaper than one or two major pots.

If I'm soling or shortmanning an sp intensive quest, I'll park one at the door. While leveling this life, I was surpside at how many casters I saw pull out an FVS and park them at the door.

Also if you are just a Melee and insist on having a hireling, a Bard hireling can heal you and give you awesome songs!

I have to disagree on using FVS since they will more often stand back and heal you rather than run up and stand in the middle of the combat to heal you like cleric hirelings seem to have been trained to do. If they could add a stand off range for healing hirelings I would agree with you.

Also Paladin hirelings tend to heal you and have LoH if you want a hireling with moderate heals that can survive a little longer.

Other suggestions:

Bluff is great for single pulling mobs. At 50+ bluff unbuffed I can pull a red named out of a room by itself which makes life easier on the non-zerg types. If the tank would let me do it.

If the tank has intimidate learn not to re-agro the mobs as soon as he hits it. There is nothing worse then hitting intim and seeing the marks show up then someone casts an AoE and pulls them right off of you. It takes a while to refresh and you have to chase everything around that just scattered to try and kill the rest of the group.

If a tank is holding agro learn to pace your damage. (see above) You don't have to dump it all at once if the healers are maintaining the agro tanks health. If you try to kill it all you just have a bunch of injured mobs mad at you. Comet fall or wail may be fine but use good judgment.

If you are the last one standing and there is a shrine near by run towards it. Fight mobs just inside running range to the shrine but not at it. That way if you die you have a better chance of recovering.

UMD is not useless. Even fighters can find a use for a few points.. CLW wand, low level scrolls, odd weapons and armor.
Useful low level scrolls or wands for non casters to UMD;
CLW (Any cure you can cast up to and including rez) a CLW wand will get that incap player (may be your healer) up so you don't have to rez him.
Invisibility (it was already mentioned that potions are harder to find but can be used underwater)
Blur (yourself and others) and any other low level buff such as bless, prayer, etc.
Hypnotise, Web, Hold undead or that obnoxious sphere one for low level CC in a panic but not much use at higher levels.
Gust of Wind..... Blow away those epic Bladebarriers, Dancing spheres and firewalls... (had a group asked how I was getting rid of them with my rogue and realized nobody thought about that spell being useful).
Nightshield or Shield (self only to block MM)
Remove Fear (aoe vs potions)
Acid Rain (good low level AoE for mobs you want to range)
Prismatic ray (although I prefer FoD this can still kill them and has double range)
Flamearrow (one extra die of dmg and useful if you run out of arrows)

I am sure there are many more depending on how high your UMD is but with a 10 most of these can be used.

[slarden]

If you wanna be happy for the rest of your life, never make a pretty woman your wife.

Hah, this is a myth for sure.

And I didn't just marry a beautiful wife to offset my gene pool so I could have beautiful children. Although that's a plus.

[Vyder]

Don't waste your money on store guild renown pots. They look great but the decay monster will rob you blind

[Gkar]

Hah, this is a myth for sure.

And I didn't just marry a beautiful wife to offset my gene pool so I could have beautiful children. Although that's a plus.

Ah yes, but how many years have you been married? It always starts good...

[Hendrik]

Under no circumstance, never, never, never, never ever follow Yuda into a dark alley.

/therapy

[achitophel]

Never post a tip thread or you will get neg rep!

[DarkForte]

Never post a tip thread or you will get neg rep!

Reported for rep farming