So, I've been going along doing my thing in TSW
And I've noticed a few things, here is a list of do's and don't's to help anyone just joining up with TSW how to get "there" a bit quicker...
"Leveling" consists of accumulating AP's and SP's for investment into skill trees - in light of this, I've found it's advisable to:
1. Choose a weapon line (main hand) and stick with it (don't decide on a different one until you've completed a deck)
2. Put ALL your AP and SP into this line until you've got at least a few of the useful points of your deck in your arsenal
3. Don't worry about your offhand, just put in enough SP to use a QL item so that you gain the modifier benefit
4. Continue with this until you've got a much higher QL weapon in the main hand, and a LOT of the deck equipped even if means you really haven't developed your offhand much.
The reason for this is that a bigger main hand weapon will mean better performance (less glance/misses) in fights, better performance in raids, and generally will mean that you will chew big chunks of mobs HP, instead of having to fight hard every fight even against the easy mobs.
Other notables: If you have to stop doing damage to heal, you should REALLY try to use attacks in your regular rotation that provide drains, proc hots, and, proc damage mitigation such as evades or armour/damage reduction, or whatever else. Any time you need to stop DPSing to heal, you're really slowing down progress in a fight.
Movement: learn, right from the get go, how to strafe and rotate at the same time. You can literally avoid 50-80%+ of damage from many mobs JUST by moving out of their line of sight (beside them, to their right or left, and behind them).
Objects and Collision!!!!!: use pillars, trees, and rocks to fight AROUND. Strafe around the object and face the object to keep LOS on the mob as long as possible, spam your rotation and watch his HP drop. This works exceptionally well vs 2+ mobs. I've survived tough fights solo just by using a tree for protection from the second mob.
TSW Advancement
TSW Advancement
" I Don't Like That Man. I Must Get To Know Him Better." -Abraham Lincoln
Re: TSW Advancement
Just wanted to add some stuff there. The AoE the mobs do, can be avoided by hiding behind a rock. (for example last boss in polaris) even tho it seems that it will hit you.
And this might be up for discussion tho. I do agree that you need to go for one "deck" or at least have a plan, and stick with it till your done! I do not however see the reason to neglect the "off-hand". as both are "main-hands" in a sense. All depending on what builder & finishers you have.
Also, don't forget to add points to your talismans. You don't need to have more than skill 5 in any stat, if your on Solomon Island.
And this might be up for discussion tho. I do agree that you need to go for one "deck" or at least have a plan, and stick with it till your done! I do not however see the reason to neglect the "off-hand". as both are "main-hands" in a sense. All depending on what builder & finishers you have.
Also, don't forget to add points to your talismans. You don't need to have more than skill 5 in any stat, if your on Solomon Island.
They who seek, will find an answer.
"If the tank dies it the healers fault, if the healer dies its the tanks fault and if the DPS die it's their own damn fault" - "Anonymous"
"If the tank dies it the healers fault, if the healer dies its the tanks fault and if the DPS die it's their own damn fault" - "Anonymous"
Re: TSW Advancement
Several good points, especially about movement and avoiding mobs (unfortunately, high encounters will often occur in places where you can't break the LoS much) but I would make some comments.
No need to necessarily focus on a « deck » and want to complete it, except for the outfit. Decks are not all great and they actually have an history that must be understood: at some point early in the beta, every tester was like
« uh what ?! » when it came to powers and the wheel. And the devs were like 
«Did we create a monster? ». So they invented the decks to more or less make choices easier and also to comfort players used to “classes”. Decks are a workaround. And they need it even more with the third auxiliary weapon becoming available in a few months.... oops I said nothing.
Also, they gave different « decks » to each faction, arbitrarily, but a deck suggested to the Illuminati works as well for Templars, except you won't get the outfit. (Yes, I'll post all decks soon.)
On the other hand, yes, you totally have to find some directions and focus (you will anyhow have a period where you get no idea at all). After some practice (do not rush Kingsmouth, never!), you'll be able to understand what abilities are the most interesting for you when exploring the wheel. Then make a plan and follow the plan, although you will likely need to change it a bit at some point.
You indeed have to focus because you need some “working” setup before being able to earn enough points to pick the powers you want from other lines.
And here we come to something essential in development: the passives powers that are NOT related to a power (weapon) line. Some (too many IMHO) passives are dependent on either a weapon (for example “your Chaos attacks do...“ in the description) or, worse, to an active power (for example “your power X will hit low life enemies with more damage”). It was supposed to be more open at the beginning.
Nevertheless you have several passives that are NOT related to a weapon or an active power and it can be very interesting to have them in a setup even if they come from a totally different line than the ones you have developed.
You can do this ONLY after building one or two main lines. Because it's a highly points-consuming process.
One archetype of those “versatile” passives is the Assault Rifle passive that applies a DoT to each target hit by an AoE (“frenzy”) power. This passive will work with any frenzy, regardless of what weapon performs the attack.
Now about the progression itself, I'd say:
- get a “main” weapon (it will remain main until you start getting enough points to raise two weapons correctly)
- get a secondary one that makes life easier or even compensate the flaws of the first one, the easiest example being a range weapon when you are first melee. It is also important to understand that, if you use for basic attacks a power that “builds” resources for all weapons, you are in an interesting situation:
With one weapon you do:
. hit (up to 5 times) and build resources for one weapon
. use a special attack consuming all resources for the weapon
. back to building
With two weapons, and an all-weapons builder:
. hit (up to 5 times) and build resources for BOTH weapons
. use special (resource consuming) from weapon 1
. use special (resource consuming) from weapon 2
. back to building
You have likely done more damage in the same time, and if your attacks offer some synergy (or just a good combo), you're a winner.
You can get a second weapon immediately or when you are roughly at rank 2 with the first weapon.
Note that you can get TWO weapons at character creation from the Crucible: Crucible weapons are better than the “QL 0” ones you can buy in London or Kingsmouth.
To do that, first get a weapon normally by visiting the Crucible, then exit it, talk to Richard Sonnac, and once you have the mission to go to Agartha and Kingsmouth, enter the Crucible again and you can get as second weapon the same way as you did for the first one. The first weapon will not disappear. This is not an exploit. It's just not specified.
- Progress with your “main” weapon but you will usually need to keep your talismans (or a part of them) within 3 ranks, very roughly, of the “main” weapon rank. It really makes a difference. For example, if you are Hammer rank 7, your talismans shouldn't be lower than rank 4, roughly, unless or course if they are Blue ones. (For example, a Blue QL5 works usually well in a global QL7 setup.)
- Level your “second” weapon according to your needs. Usually when you get around rank 6-7 in the first weapon line, you'll feel the need to really upgrade the second weapon.
- Unless you mostly team and raid and therefore rely on others for many things, you need to have the versatility offered by two lines (and, later, extra additions) when you arrive in hard zones.
For example, in the first zone of Transylvania, you'll meet many hard mobs that need to be weakened many times within 20 seconds or they become very powerful (and this has been nerfed since beta). You need either that or to be able to neutralize them from time to time but quickly enough (or have huge heals).
In the second zone of Transylvania, it's a bit the opposite: impairing many hard mobs will make them over-protected against you and most of them will be immune to hindered state (root, snare).
I am speaking of normal mobs, not dungeon or lair mobs.
As for the ranks, if you mostly team, yes, being rank 5 owns anything “normal” on Solomon Island in groups, even a group of two (forget lair mobs). And it will work in most situations solo. (You're happy that Blue Mountain and the Savage Coast near Ami's store have been severely nerfed since beta). But you'll be much more comfortable if you solo and are 6-7 for some steps in BM. At some point in BM, it can be a good thing to go to Egypt and do some of the first missions to get points and stuff, and then come back to BM. Egypt is very different from BM and, at its beginning, somehow easier.
No need to necessarily focus on a « deck » and want to complete it, except for the outfit. Decks are not all great and they actually have an history that must be understood: at some point early in the beta, every tester was like
« uh what ?! » when it came to powers and the wheel. And the devs were like «Did we create a monster? ». So they invented the decks to more or less make choices easier and also to comfort players used to “classes”. Decks are a workaround. And they need it even more with the third auxiliary weapon becoming available in a few months.... oops I said nothing.Also, they gave different « decks » to each faction, arbitrarily, but a deck suggested to the Illuminati works as well for Templars, except you won't get the outfit. (Yes, I'll post all decks soon.)
On the other hand, yes, you totally have to find some directions and focus (you will anyhow have a period where you get no idea at all). After some practice (do not rush Kingsmouth, never!), you'll be able to understand what abilities are the most interesting for you when exploring the wheel. Then make a plan and follow the plan, although you will likely need to change it a bit at some point.
You indeed have to focus because you need some “working” setup before being able to earn enough points to pick the powers you want from other lines.
And here we come to something essential in development: the passives powers that are NOT related to a power (weapon) line. Some (too many IMHO) passives are dependent on either a weapon (for example “your Chaos attacks do...“ in the description) or, worse, to an active power (for example “your power X will hit low life enemies with more damage”). It was supposed to be more open at the beginning.
Nevertheless you have several passives that are NOT related to a weapon or an active power and it can be very interesting to have them in a setup even if they come from a totally different line than the ones you have developed.
You can do this ONLY after building one or two main lines. Because it's a highly points-consuming process.
One archetype of those “versatile” passives is the Assault Rifle passive that applies a DoT to each target hit by an AoE (“frenzy”) power. This passive will work with any frenzy, regardless of what weapon performs the attack.
Now about the progression itself, I'd say:
- get a “main” weapon (it will remain main until you start getting enough points to raise two weapons correctly)
- get a secondary one that makes life easier or even compensate the flaws of the first one, the easiest example being a range weapon when you are first melee. It is also important to understand that, if you use for basic attacks a power that “builds” resources for all weapons, you are in an interesting situation:
With one weapon you do:
. hit (up to 5 times) and build resources for one weapon
. use a special attack consuming all resources for the weapon
. back to building
With two weapons, and an all-weapons builder:
. hit (up to 5 times) and build resources for BOTH weapons
. use special (resource consuming) from weapon 1
. use special (resource consuming) from weapon 2
. back to building
You have likely done more damage in the same time, and if your attacks offer some synergy (or just a good combo), you're a winner.
You can get a second weapon immediately or when you are roughly at rank 2 with the first weapon.
Note that you can get TWO weapons at character creation from the Crucible: Crucible weapons are better than the “QL 0” ones you can buy in London or Kingsmouth.
To do that, first get a weapon normally by visiting the Crucible, then exit it, talk to Richard Sonnac, and once you have the mission to go to Agartha and Kingsmouth, enter the Crucible again and you can get as second weapon the same way as you did for the first one. The first weapon will not disappear. This is not an exploit. It's just not specified.
- Progress with your “main” weapon but you will usually need to keep your talismans (or a part of them) within 3 ranks, very roughly, of the “main” weapon rank. It really makes a difference. For example, if you are Hammer rank 7, your talismans shouldn't be lower than rank 4, roughly, unless or course if they are Blue ones. (For example, a Blue QL5 works usually well in a global QL7 setup.)
- Level your “second” weapon according to your needs. Usually when you get around rank 6-7 in the first weapon line, you'll feel the need to really upgrade the second weapon.
- Unless you mostly team and raid and therefore rely on others for many things, you need to have the versatility offered by two lines (and, later, extra additions) when you arrive in hard zones.
For example, in the first zone of Transylvania, you'll meet many hard mobs that need to be weakened many times within 20 seconds or they become very powerful (and this has been nerfed since beta). You need either that or to be able to neutralize them from time to time but quickly enough (or have huge heals).
In the second zone of Transylvania, it's a bit the opposite: impairing many hard mobs will make them over-protected against you and most of them will be immune to hindered state (root, snare).
I am speaking of normal mobs, not dungeon or lair mobs.
As for the ranks, if you mostly team, yes, being rank 5 owns anything “normal” on Solomon Island in groups, even a group of two (forget lair mobs). And it will work in most situations solo. (You're happy that Blue Mountain and the Savage Coast near Ami's store have been severely nerfed since beta). But you'll be much more comfortable if you solo and are 6-7 for some steps in BM. At some point in BM, it can be a good thing to go to Egypt and do some of the first missions to get points and stuff, and then come back to BM. Egypt is very different from BM and, at its beginning, somehow easier.
Re: TSW Advancement
Yes, good additions.
I meant to qualify the statement about finishing one deck, but yes it's very true that you do need both. I've just found that even within one line there is a lot of strength higher up the chain that add synergy with other attacks lower in the chain - for example using fists you can really gain a lot of strength by just going all out on a few damage lines early on to get your base attacks going, for example, I use I think "One two" and "go for the throat" and a lower triple attack burst that really provides decent damage, but, I also use escalation religiously to lower enemies mitigation and increase my own, so ya, absolutely it's a good idea to do both.
I meant to qualify the statement about finishing one deck, but yes it's very true that you do need both. I've just found that even within one line there is a lot of strength higher up the chain that add synergy with other attacks lower in the chain - for example using fists you can really gain a lot of strength by just going all out on a few damage lines early on to get your base attacks going, for example, I use I think "One two" and "go for the throat" and a lower triple attack burst that really provides decent damage, but, I also use escalation religiously to lower enemies mitigation and increase my own, so ya, absolutely it's a good idea to do both.
" I Don't Like That Man. I Must Get To Know Him Better." -Abraham Lincoln
Re: TSW Advancement
by the way chris, whats the benefit of attacking 5 times to increase resources instead of attacking just once to build 1 resource, and then consume it?
normally I just attack once to build one resource and then use the alternate attack that consumes resources on the next attack.
normally I just attack once to build one resource and then use the alternate attack that consumes resources on the next attack.
" I Don't Like That Man. I Must Get To Know Him Better." -Abraham Lincoln
Re: TSW Advancement
There is none. At least none that I can see. If the consumer says "consumes all x-resource" then you can go 1, then use. Some consumers require you to have 5/5 resources built up before use.noobas wrote:by the way chris, whats the benefit of attacking 5 times to increase resources instead of attacking just once to build 1 resource, and then consume it?
normally I just attack once to build one resource and then use the alternate attack that consumes resources on the next attack.
Also remember that there are skill in other tree's. That can be used without using the weapon from that tree. Usually passives. There are some tips and tricks when building your own deck.
The further you go into the game, the more Impaired / Purge / debuffs and buffs to the group you want in your build to make it easier. (if your doing instances that is)
They who seek, will find an answer.
"If the tank dies it the healers fault, if the healer dies its the tanks fault and if the DPS die it's their own damn fault" - "Anonymous"
"If the tank dies it the healers fault, if the healer dies its the tanks fault and if the DPS die it's their own damn fault" - "Anonymous"
Re: TSW Advancement
None?Kilajan wrote:There is none. At least none that I can see. If the consumer says "consumes all x-resource" then you can go 1, then use. Some consumers require you to have 5/5 resources built up before use.noobas wrote:by the way chris, whats the benefit of attacking 5 times to increase resources instead of attacking just once to build 1 resource, and then consume it?
normally I just attack once to build one resource and then use the alternate attack that consumes resources on the next attack.
Check better; it depends. 
Several "consumers" do more effect based on the number of resources built.
For example and just for example:
- Fire at Will (AoE "Frenzy" attack with Assault Rifle) performs a main hit + one extra hit per resource consumed, each of these hits being around 30% of the main hit value.
- In other words:
- building 1 resource and then using Fire at Will:
"x" AoE damage
- building 5 resources and use Fire at Wil:
x
+ 30% x
+ 30% x
+ 30% x
+ 30% x
You can use one, two, three, resources, it's progressive
Buckshot, a shotgun attack deals 22% more damage if it consumes 5 resources (no intermediate). It's not progressive, it's all or nothing.
Call for Eris, a Chaos one-target attack, works like Fire at will roughly: it does 30% more damage per Chaos resource consumed.
Why do you think there are active skills that full-charge you, and why there are potions that do the same?
Finally, many powers require a set number of resources to be available, like 2 or 3. - In other words:
Now, the big question is: is it better to hit after with only one resource built or build more resource and hit with more damage? And the answer is: sorry but it totally depends on the fight, the setup, and the mob. And also on the speed at which you build (not all skills are builders, and not all builders are dual-weapons builders). And finally it also depends if your builders trigger an interesting passive or not! yep... complex.
Also, sometimes, with dual builders, you will charge a weapon to the max just because you wanted to charge the other one.
You have to experiment and figure out the best combos.
At this point, I'll mention something important: the bigger number is not always the better. I saw several people who want the big hit as in "OMG I rule da wolrdzor"... I'll give you an example to think about:
In Chaos, you have a powerful one-hit attack called "Pull the strings" (it also has the advantage of a 7m range which is rare in Chaos). And you have an attack called "Four horsemen" dealing 4 smaller hits in a row... less impressive.
But now consider that Pull the strings is one hit and, therefore, one series of rolls. If, for example, you glance (performs a weak hit), all your damage is glanced. If you are evaded, all your damage is evaded.
Four horsemen got one series of rolls pert hit, so, if the mob tends to avoid your hits well, you have statistically more changes to land "something" (and possibly trigger a passive!) with Four horsemen than with Pull the strings.
And you have hundreds of similar situations: beware of the first reading and the first feelings, good or bad. It's really complex. (So complex that even a dev can get lost, yeah.)
When you get the third "auxiliary" weapon in a few weeks, it will be even more complex.
And, of course, keep in mind what I explained about the "universal" passives in my previous post.
Re: TSW Advancement
I read Noobas and Kilas posts earlier today, and just felt like a complete noob/idiot, cause I had done single shots on shotty to build up to 5 every time!! Then after I read I tried after patch to just build one or 2 resources, and I tell you I suddenly felt like I owned all the mobs. The fights were halfed in length or even more, I was surprised. So it diffinately is worth not building up 5 resources atleast in my setup! 
Re: TSW Advancement
Good news then. Nice that we could help.Lasarina wrote:I read Noobas and Kilas posts earlier today, and just felt like a complete noob/idiot, cause I had done single shots on shotty to build up to 5 every time!! Then after I read I tried after patch to just build one or 2 resources, and I tell you I suddenly felt like I owned all the mobs. The fights were halfed in length or even more, I was surprised. So it diffinately is worth not building up 5 resources atleast in my setup!
They who seek, will find an answer.
"If the tank dies it the healers fault, if the healer dies its the tanks fault and if the DPS die it's their own damn fault" - "Anonymous"
"If the tank dies it the healers fault, if the healer dies its the tanks fault and if the DPS die it's their own damn fault" - "Anonymous"
Re: TSW Advancement
The number of resources you build depends on your powers and setup; it's 5 max; that's all. You can build only one if building more has no effect (obvious!), or if it has a passive effect but not good enough to make you wait before using a "consumer" power.
Good to know you now only build what is necessary and grats on owning mobs! Kill'em all!
BTW, side note: I used "up to" which didn't mean you had to do it but which is "indicating a maximum amount" (Oxford dictionary) and is "used as a function word to indicate a limit or boundary" (Merriam-Webster dictionary).
You can build only one if building more has no effect (obvious!), or if it has a passive effect but not good enough to make you wait before using a "consumer" power.Good to know you now only build what is necessary and grats on owning mobs! Kill'em all!
BTW, side note: I used "up to" which didn't mean you had to do it but which is "indicating a maximum amount" (Oxford dictionary) and is "used as a function word to indicate a limit or boundary" (Merriam-Webster dictionary).