Returning player looking for help

[l0rddan]

Hey guys I'm returning from playing a looooong time ago, like level cap 12 long ago. Anyway ive jumped back in and went to go to my favourite paladin but well hes **** now.....horribly so lol. I really liked him and want to try to resurrect him but I don't really know what im doing. Happy to reincarnate him with a lesser heart, currently at lvl 12. What I need is help figuring out whats viable now. I have a tonne of bastard swords so would prefer to use those if possible but otherwise im pretty open to suggestions just want to get him back out there

[Thunder-Monkey]

Hi and welcome back!

Pallys are awesome right now and you're only 2 levels away from getting the new-improved Holy Sword spell. so definitely worth sticking with the class.

Lots of good builds here, if you can find something that fits your current race; some will use khopeshes so substitute that proficiency feat for bastard swords >>> https://www.ddo.com/forums/showthrea...=1#post5759360

The Vanguard tree for 'sword & board' is great but it really shines after lvl 20, so you can use KotC tree til 20 then switch to Vanguard (41 AP to get capstone) - you'll have enough points left for the best low-hanging fruit in both KotC and defender trees.

I can personally recommend Ekrid the Basher - i have one sitting at lvl 30, great dps and tanking.

If you want something more personalised just ask - happy to help.

TM

[l0rddan]

Hey thanks so much! These builds have already been a big help on getting ideas what to do, khopeshs seem to be the thing and I have a few of those in my bank anyway so looks like ill be doing that. Having looked at the Builds Erkid the Basher does look to be my favourite so im thinking of giving that a good go, the only thing someone said to me was that it says its from update 24 and we're at like 29 or something, does that change the usefulness of the build at all? Also hearing a lot about past lives and things being needed for epic levels, do you think that's the case and if so what past lives are worth it?

[Thunder-Monkey]

Khopesh vs Bastard Swords: I have crunched the base numbers on all weapons in the game, not taking any other factors into account (as if the weapon was being swung by a dead fish) and the overall damage output of these 2 is very close, but BS wins out whether Holy Sword is active or not. In-game, however, Khopesh does more dmg due to the higher crit rate combining with doublestrike. If you want to use all your lovely Bastards you can, its not a game-changer, its just not optimal. It's also worth mentioning that Dwarven Axes come a close 3rd, so if you happen to be a dwarf you can use these without taking a feat.

Past Lives: Sure these will help. Are they necessary? I think it depends what content you'll be running at end-game. You'll likely be called on to tank in various raids. My Basher (34 point with 1 Ftr past-life and a few Epic past-lives) can easily tank the Thunderholme dragons on epic elite. Sure he has to heal up sometimes but the only real scary moments is when he's knocked down by the no-save dragon knockdowns (even Stand against the Tide doesn't prevent these). But Legendary Elites are a different ball-game and my guy is, as yet, untested here. Epic PL's here would be a big help I think. As well as the active toggles from each sphere, the passive components can be stacked up to NINE times:

ARCANE Sphere: +1% Element Absorption per stack (max 9%)
DIVINE Sphere: +3 PRR per stack (max 27%)
MARTIAL Sphere: +2 AC and +1 AC per ten character levels, per stack (max +45 at lvl 30)
PRIMAL Sphere: +3 maximum HP and +4 HP per ten character levels, per stack (max +135 at lvl 30)

Compare these to the defensive Heroic Past lives and the effort it takes to get them (this is NOT to say they are not worth having!):

BARBARIAN: +10 HP per stack (up to 3 stacks)
WARLOCK: +3 MRR (up to 3 stacks)
PALADIN: +10 Healing Amp (up to 3 stacks)

Also worth noting, Fighter PL gives you +1 to your tactical DCs per stack (up to +3); Vanguard tree makes a lot of use out of tactical feats.

So, in an ideal world, get all the defensive stuff you can if you wanna stand up to LE Sor'jek. But the build is still hugely viable without everything maxxed out.

U24 to U29: Not much has changed for Pallys, what's changed is the mobs you're fighting at end-game. Huge HP pools and high dmg output, some mobs will bypass 100% fort easily so 150% minimum is recommended. Portal-bashing in Leg Shroud can be a pain if you're not set up for it - lots of threads on this.

So my advice, get to 20 and grind out some EPLs while accumulating fate points for your twists (this will become clear when you get there) and building up your gear for raiding - then think about heroic PLs - and Have Fun!!!

TM

[l0rddan]

I didn't even really think of legendary elites being different to epic level content for some reason I thought they were one in the same :L so its good to know theres still some stuff to do after 20 for me!

As for the build I am absolutely loving it, the tactical abilities really add a unique flavour to the game I havnt really thought of before!

The past lives thing has been interesting some abilities there like the barbarian health that I thought would be a must but really 10 hp a life doesn't seem huge which is reassuring, im just finding it such a grind levelling at the moment in terms of getting groups that the idea of doing it all again as soon as I hit 20 sounds horrifying XD but maybe something ill want later

Thank you again for all your help you've made a big difference in getting me keen on this game again : L

[Thunder-Monkey]

You're very welcome - and thanks also to BigErkyKid for the build.

As for grouping, if you happen to be on Ghallanda send me a PM.

TM