Class/magic: non-casters and hybrids

[Sky]

i got more questions regarding the blackguard.

1. i assume you need to own a shield for the shield bash to happen, right?

2. when you shield bash, sometimes you stumble. is this a set % or is it influenced by anything?

3. does the weight of the shield or any other property of the shield affect the shield bash in any way ?

4. do the character stats - attack, CL, anything else - affect the shield bash?

the thing is, if i have a new character, i might *not* want a shield in order to avoid stumbles and stuns. And when i do use bash, i would obviously want to maximize its effects.

[Nick]

1. i assume you need to own a shield for the shield bash to happen, right?

Yes.

2. when you shield bash, sometimes you stumble. is this a set % or is it influenced by anything?

5/12 of the time at 15 DEX dropping to 1/6 of the time at 18/200 DEX. Stumbling doesn't affect the shield bash, but does reduce the number of weapon blows you get that round.

3. does the weight of the shield or any other property of the shield affect the shield bash in any way ?

The weight of the shield and the damage dice of the shield affect the damage done.

4. do the character stats - attack, CL, anything else - affect the shield bash?

Chance of bashing depends on melee to-hit skill (that's the base skill, not equipment or buff bonuses) and DEX. Bash damage depends on the shield as above, melee to-hit skill, total weight of gear, player weight, player level, and STR.

Good questions

[Sky]

*methinx* some calculations are off;

i'm a CL39 HT Blackguard, and because of reasons (no mana to speak of) i have just now cast for the first time all my spell.

casting the first 4 spells from the first book net me 5.000 XP. casting the remaining 4 from the second book netted me 26.000 xp. I got a total of 31.000 (about what i get for killing a major unique) for casting 8 spells.

that's a bit too much, innit?

also i noticed that Poison Brand allows you to swap weapons, which is a bit silly. Grab a weapon with +INT, cast spell, switch weapons. Looks to me as if poison brand enchants the weapon itself, not your hands.

[Sky]

woha, so,

i was feeling foolhardy so i'm fighting the entire Atlas extended family at once.

And for kicks, i decide to use THIRST FOR BLOOD!
(being that this is a newer build and the CON permadrain has been removed)

I rack up some Orc kills and manage to keep it at red while i pummel Polyphemus.

Polyphemus dies, and i start fighting Chronos. Chronos pushes me away and then breathes fire on me, and foolish me doesnt have *Fire.

-57 hp, i die.

Or do i?

"your lust for blood keep you alive!"


i gape in amazement at the screen. BUG? Undocumented feature?

I screenshot it, and then try pressing 'q' .. yes, i can quaff that *Heal.


Nick .. i love you.

[Nick]

I've been waiting for someone to find that

[fizzix]

Nick,
Any particular classes that you want feedback on? I'll probably try the new feature branch once I finish my current game.

[AnonymousHero]

I've been waiting for someone to find that

That's amazing.

I guess not that many players religiously read diffs.

[Nick]

Nick,
Any particular classes that you want feedback on? I'll probably try the new feature branch once I finish my current game.

I think probably priests, mages and rangers have got the least workout, in that order. I'll probably play a mage after my necro dies (or wins!).

[mrfy]

I think probably priests, mages and rangers have got the least workout, in that order. I'll probably play a mage after my necro dies (or wins!).

I feel that Rangers are nerfed too much, and maybe it's just the fact that the bonus to shooting speed got cut so much. I tried the new Ranger class a few characters ago and it didn't feel fun anymore. I quickly moved on to trying Blackguard and some of the other ones.

In regards to the shooting speed nerf for example, my current character (dwarf priest) found a nice looking sling of Buckland and I thought sweet! But its average damage wasn't nearly good enough. Slings of Buckland used to be quite worthwhile.

[Pete Mack]

@mrfy--i suspect you are right. Rangers were lousy til DL 20 then powerful, then really powerful at dl 40. Nerf the extra shot too much, and they are left with...not much.

[jevansau]

I'll have to see if the recent changes made rangers worthwhile again, but the combination of much worse shooting damage, and vastly inferior spells makes them into the new challenge class.