U50 Comprehensive Guide to Bow DPS

[Carpone]

What do you cut in case of limited AP and what would you say is the minimum AP you need for this build to pull ahead of others like ranger 20 for example?

You cut the racial enhancements if you aren't a racial completionist.

This build always pulls ahead of 20 Ranger and the other class splits tested in the guide regardless of racial past lives.

never played a ranger/rogue build before, but is the solo build good for soloing 1-20 @ r1-3 or does it only shine at lvl 30 with all the goodies?

I wouldn't run this build solely for heroic leveling. Fire sorc is way better for racial past lives. If you need a rogue past life, I'd go 17 Rogue/2 Arti/1 Barb Inquisitive and run R1 from level 4-20.

Some fairly lofty claims there lol. I would like to see some discussion around your specific numbers and what people's idea of success in R10 looks like in general.

I've shared the model and all the numbers that plug into it.

Success in R10s goes way beyond a build. It's about skill, quest knowledge, party makeup and team work. I've played in static groups with this build where we steamrolled everything at run speed, and then I've 4-manned R10s with one other DPS, a tank and a healer where it was a slog.

[wyattbatman]

Does the new 4 filigree artifacts change the gearing meta at all?

[Carpone]

Search on the Rogue forum from Aug 2019 for the 17/2/1 Inquisitive. I'd ask on the Ranger forum for PL builds. I suspect Tempest is the optimal way to go in heroics.

Does the new 4 filigree artifacts change the gearing meta at all?

No. The Perfect items don't solve any gearing problems with bows. The "best gear set" in the guide is an actual work of art. It's by far the tightest gearset I have ever seen in the years of playing this game.

[Tilomere]

I've 4-manned R10s with one other DPS, a tank and a healer where it was a slog.

Consider dropping HW and reverting back to the standard 18 ranger/1 FvS/1 rogue meta winter/summer DM combo. Also consider boosting base Armor Piercing to 160 with filigree so your crits actually land all the time against everything. Last build you had lower always-on fort as well, and whiffed a bunch of your crits which is fine for a tank or tanky but a DPS shouldn't do.

AP
36 DWS (IAF, SLL, HD)
40+1 Tome VKF (Capstone, dagger crit profile, dagger ranged power to damage, stuffs)
2 + 15 PL SDK Chains
2 WS DM

FoTW

Rotation is then Dire Charge > triple chain cleave > triple chain cleave > FoK auto crit > clean up with bow. If you use an orb + dagger, offhand versatility will give auto crit Fan of Knives as well, for even more AoE. You can use winter force crit/impulse ring, and orb with insightful impulse to power FoK.

PSWF and all the cleaves will fill your adrenaline meter up so you can spam adrenaline sniper shot every 6 seconds.

This will give you the AoE to clear dungeons and quadruple the amount of adrenaline sniper shots with basically endless adrenalines while clearing packs. So even though you use a bow less of the time, this will actually cause you to deal substantially more bow dps.

HW is a melee tree for making a favored enemy x2/x3 dagger raid alt, as you say it is a slog on its own or close to on its own for clearing dungeons. DPS isn't just stats. You maxed stats in a spread sheet for a theoretical perfect situation and made a slog build. DPS is rotation. With lower bow stats and a better rotation, you can do substantially better dps.

PS: your rogue assassin build also doesn't have the 160 fort bypass without marking to double assassinate high fort mobs. So again while I'm sure the spreadsheet shows it is maximum optimal theortical dps, it isn't as functional as a build with lower stats that has 160 fort bypass without marking which can double assassinate high fort mobs.

[wyattbatman]

Thank you for the reply about the new artifacts. One last question, at lower rAP values, does halfling outperform WE?

[Carpone]

One last question, at lower rAP values, does halfling outperform WE?

Halfling outperforms Wood-Elf on lower-AC mobs where the 6% to-hit isn't relevant.

[Carpone]

Consider dropping HW and reverting back to the standard 18 ranger/1 FvS/1 rogue

No one should do that. It does much less DPS.

Also consider boosting base Armor Piercing to 160 with filigree so your crits actually land all the time against everything.

Maybe you should read the guide where I address armor-piercing. And the cap is 170, not 160.

[Epicsoul]

Consider /snip

Going ranger also gives one access to Spike Growth for AOE damage. I would also utilize Soundburst from Exalted Angel, which will cause helplessness for even MORE AOE damage.

[Carpone]

Minor but important change the top gear set: Replaced Draconic Gem with Dark Diversion.

Also added Legendary Bow of the Silver Flame to bypass bludgeon damage.

[Komradkillingmachine]

Minor but important change the top gear set: Replaced Draconic Gem with Dark Diversion.

Last I checked, Dark Diversion (aug) didn't stack with Wildwood Gauntlet's Distant Diversion. Did the devs update it recently?

[Carpone]

Last I checked, Dark Diversion (aug) didn't stack with Wildwood Gauntlet's Distant Diversion. Did the devs update it recently?

They do not stack. The optimal gear set uses Tinkerer's Gloves though.

[Komradkillingmachine]

They do not stack. The optimal gear set uses Tinkerer's Gloves though.

Oh, you're right. I just noticed U50 gear changes in the guide.

Also, holy **** Lois, they nerfed both Tinkerer's set and Mantle of Suulo's set 3d6 SA. That's disgusting.

[Epicsoul]

Last I checked, Dark Diversion (aug) didn't stack with Wildwood Gauntlet's Distant Diversion. Did the devs update it recently?

The "Best" gear set-up in the guide doesn't use Wildwood.

EDIT: Carpone beat me.

[achaius]

Carpone,

Did you change the “best” neck slot to celestial insignia from string of ears? Or did I misread it originally when acquiring my gear pre-TR?