Curse

Young_Ranger · Jan 10, 2010, 03:38 PM // 15:38

I have a level 14, 55hp “Wanna-Be” Monk that dies quickly when confronted with the dreaded Fanged Iboga outside of Kamadan. Forget about killing Raptors in HM, I just want to stay alive while a level 1 Fanged Iboga beats on me. (I usually die before I run out of energy.)

Wanna-Be has full radiant (newbie AL 5) armor with superior runes, totem axe and a grim cestus (-50hp). Using normal and elite monk tomes, I have tried several 55hp monk build variations.

Protection Prayers at 15, Healing Prayers at 3
Protective Spirit 23 sec duration
Healing Breeze 15 sec duration
Shield of Absorption 7 sec duration, 10 sec recharge
Shield Hands 8 sec duration, 15 sec recharge

This morning I mapped the skill duration and recharge time. In the past when I always died, I was waiting until a skill flashed before activating it again. My conclusion is you can’t wait for the skill to flash before you re-activate the skill.

Every 55hp build includes a statement “maintain these enchantments”, other than using a bot, macro or 3rd party assist program please comment on how you develop a rhythm or pattern to maintaining enchantments?

Please comment on Blessed Aura, Totem Axe and Headpiece as it relates to making your enchantments last longer. I recall reading somewhere not to equip either your totem axe or headpiece until after casting Blessed Aura. Is this true? What is the most effective way to making your enchantments last longer? What kind of headpiece makes your enchantments last longer?

What type of AL armor and specific headpiece (stacking bonus) helps the most with a 55hp monk? (What armor crafter or armor collector supplies the headpiece?)

Thanks.

Yasmine · Jan 10, 2010, 04:02 PM // 16:02

Uhm, how much health do you actually have? (full superior runes and the -50hp cesta would give -425hp, while you have only 360hp at lvl14). Maybe your health is too low? Else, i don't see what it might be.
About mantaining enchantments: usually there is enough time to renew the enchantment after it starts flashing. Also, if your effect monitor in the interface is too small for you to see the timer under the skill, enlarge it. With some experience however you will get the rhytm and it will become less necessary to check the effect monitor.
Can't comment why you shouldn't equip totem or headpiece until after casting blessed - never personally heard of it. The headpiece you should use is any ar +1 protection prayers (you can craft one in kamadan). Collectors aren't recommended because the ar doesn't matter to a 55 while collector armor doesn't allow the addition of an insignia.

laurana half elf · Jan 10, 2010, 07:20 PM // 19:20

they die with 1 wand.....

just get a normal build and kill them

Young_Ranger · Jan 11, 2010, 07:50 PM // 19:50

I leveled "Wanna-Be" to level 20 yesterday. Today, I am happy to report that I am making progress. The level 1 Fanged Iboga was not able to kill me. Unfortunately, it took me about 10 minutes to kill him. Obviously, I have a bit to much defense in my skill bar and not enough offense.

So trying to play a monk with only 1hp appears to me instant death when taking damage.

The Drunkard · Jan 12, 2010, 12:24 AM // 00:24

Quote:

Originally Posted by Young_Ranger

I leveled "Wanna-Be" to level 20 yesterday. Today, I am happy to report that I am making progress. The level 1 Fanged Iboga was not able to kill me. Unfortunately, it took me about 10 minutes to kill him. Obviously, I have a bit to much defense in my skill bar and not enough offense.

So trying to play a monk with only 1hp appears to me instant death when taking damage.

First, why are you testing on a level 1? You should be testing in areas that you want to farm. Second, you need more than just healing breeze at 3 hp to get past degen. Third, the build calls for 55hp not 1. Fourth, where are your damage skills? (ie smiting prayers). And finally, blessed aura is strong because it increases the time shield of judgement is up which increases your damage output.

I suggest reading this page
http://pvx.wikia.com/wiki/Build:Mo/any_55_Monk
for the rest of your questions.

Young_Ranger · Jan 12, 2010, 03:55 AM // 03:55

Quote:

Originally Posted by The Drunkard

First, why are you testing on a level 1?

I suggest reading this page
http://pvx.wikia.com/wiki/Build:Mo/any_55_Monk
for the rest of your questions.

Years ago, I was taught that there are four levels of information:
- At the base is useless information. It may be "good" information. It may be factually correct information. However, the information is useless if the person receiving the information does not know what to do with it.
- At the next level is useful information. The person receiving the information begins to know what to do with it.
- At the next level is knowledge. As a person is able to combine more and more useful pieces of information, they begin to develop a broader perspective.
- At the top of the information pyramid is understanding. At this point a person understands the bigger picture and how everything works and why.

I know how to use heroes with excellent hero builds, nice weapons and fully runed armor to level my characters to level 20. I know how to copy builds from wiki pvx. I don't know how to play a monk.

I had 2 "standard" tested variations on a 55 hp monk. One had Healing Breeze, but the other one didn't. One had Shielding Hands, but the other one didn't. They both had Protective Spirit and Shield of Absorption.

You ask what am I doing testing on level 1? I am trying to upgrade a useless pvx wiki build that means nothing to me. I am moving up the information pyramid towards understanding. I now understand why you may not need Healing Breeze. If you stop the damage then you don't need to heal.

Drunkard, I want to thank you for answering my question about Blessed Aura.

It seems obvious now 55hp monk requires 55hp for the build to work. All the documentation says add runes, etc. I don't recall reading not to let your health start at 1hp.

Again, thanks for your help with Blessed Aura.

The Drunkard · Jan 12, 2010, 04:18 AM // 04:18

Quote:

Originally Posted by Young_Ranger

snip

At the bottom of that "useless" skill page there is a link on how to play an invincible monk. It gives instructions on how to create a 55 build and what alternatives from the standard skillbar you can add to your template there are also videos posted with popular farming spots (though they are out of date) and proper usage of the build.

Do not dismiss PvX because the information doesn't appear right before you, it's just a pain to look for.

edit: link added:http://pvx.wikia.com/wiki/Guide:Invinci-Monk_Guide

MisterB · Jan 12, 2010, 04:36 AM // 04:36

If you want some more basic information beyond that pvx build, you can look at these links:

http://wiki.guildwars.com/wiki/55_monk
http://pvx.wikia.com/wiki/Guide:Invinci-Monk_Guide
http://guildwars.wikia.com/wiki/Invincimonk

Be prepared for redundant information. But those guides explain more of the mechanics of the 55 or Protective Spirit based builds rather than an explanation of how to use one particular variant. If you want more direct information, feel free to ask.

Quote:

So trying to play a monk with only 1hp appears to me instant death when taking damage.

Protective Spirit cannot reduce damage below 1. Without additional protection at 1 hp, a single hit will kill you.

Young_Ranger · Jan 12, 2010, 01:01 PM // 13:01

Drunkad advised not to kill level 1, but to learn how to use a skill bar where you intend to use it. As a complete skill bar this is excellent advice. This advice is limited by several key facts. I have never played a monk! (I have never played a caster.) I have never used the individual skills on the skill bar.

All of the links provided have lots of good information. It is going to take time to transform this "good", (but dare I say "useless" information to me) into a practical working understanding of how to play a 55 hp monk.

Let me try this again, all information is "useless" until you know what to do with it. There is a learning process where information becomes useful. My learning process is to engage monsters at a ridiculously low level.

ShivaTwoDelta · Jan 12, 2010, 04:48 PM // 16:48

Personally I prefer 600 tank with smiter as there is more room for mistakes without being instantly killed.

In case you wanna try it:

The tank
Mo/me
Armor level 15
My attributes: 14 protection, 12 divine.

Skills:
1) Shield of Absorption
2) Spirit Bond
3) Protective Spirit
4) Spell Breaker
5) Arcane echo (to use SB twice) OR protective bond to use on the smiter when he risks taking damage from Reversal Of Damage (Especially in Cathedral of Flames dungeon)
6) Blessed Aura
7) Balthazar's Spirit
8) Essence Bond

Usage:
Keep skills 6+7+8 on yourself all the time as well as protective spirit.
Spirit Bond is your main heal, every time you take more than 60 damage, you'll get healed for +100 health.
Spell Breaker is obvious and Shield of Absorption you should only need against enemies like the Enchanted in CoF runs as they can literally spike you to death before Spirit Bond recharged.

The smiter:
Mo/Ne
Armor level 60 with sup runes.
Ideal for the smiter is running as little HP as possible. Without a cesta, you can run with 105 HP.
Attributes should be 16/16, even tho 15 prot and 16 smite won't mean the end of the world.

The bar I use:
1) Signet of Devotion
2) Blessed signet
3) Blood is Power
4) Rebirth
5) Vital Blessing
6) Life Attunement
7) Holy Wrath
8) Retribution

Usage: Fairly simple.
BiP the tank, heal yourself with signet of devotion. When you run 105 hp, you'll sacrifice a lil over 30 hp, which is healed up again with one signet.
Keep skills 5+6+7+8 on the tank and stay back while he takes agro and things die.
After a battle, blessed signet for energy and bip on the tank.

Hope it helps, it's really a nice duo farm build and alot less stressy than the 55hp one.

MisterB · Jan 12, 2010, 07:55 PM // 19:55

You have a few misconceptions here. A 55 monk is not similar to a regular monk, and you don't need to know how to play a monk to 55. I have a 55 monk, but Alesia, nay, even Danika is better than me at the job of a regular monk.

I would also argue that your learning process is flawed. A 55 monk has difficulty engaging a single foe, especially a weak one. If you have a little experience with the build, you can engage and defeat a single foe just fine, but that is not really what the build is designed to do. It's actually easier to engage multiple foes because the build relies on you being hit to gain energy. The learning process I used was to copy a build for a particular area to farm the drops I wanted, and then I was able to modify skills and builds to tackle other foes once I had practice and understood how the skills worked together.

If you don't ask specific questions about the problems you are encountering, no one can help you. The links provided offer an explanation of the build, the concepts behind it, how the skills work together, how to construct a build, and how to use all of the skills together. I can't really explain the basics any better than those guides without typing the same thing using different words.

Here are my answers to your questions in the first post:

Quote:

This morning I mapped the skill duration and recharge time. In the past when I always died, I was waiting until a skill flashed before activating it again. My conclusion is you can’t wait for the skill to flash before you re-activate the skill.

This is too vague. Which skill?

Quote:

Every 55hp build includes a statement “maintain these enchantments”, other than using a bot, macro or 3rd party assist program please comment on how you develop a rhythm or pattern to maintaining enchantments?

Memorize the recharge time and the order to cast correctly, then repeat the pattern. No bot, macro, or 3rd party tool apart from your gray matter is required.

Quote:

Please comment on Blessed Aura, Totem Axe and Headpiece as it relates to making your enchantments last longer. I recall reading somewhere not to equip either your totem axe or headpiece until after casting Blessed Aura. Is this true? What is the most effective way to making your enchantments last longer? What kind of headpiece makes your enchantments last longer?

You need a 20% enchant weapon, and Totem Axe does this. If you want to increase enchantment durations further, then put superior divine on a +1 divine headpiece, cast Blessed Aura, and then swap back to whatever, probably a superior smiting hat.

Quote:

What type of AL armor and specific headpiece (stacking bonus) helps the most with a 55hp monk? (What armor crafter or armor collector supplies the headpiece?)

Quote:

Wanna-Be has full radiant (newbie AL 5) armor with superior runes, totem axe and a grim cestus (-50hp).

The armor, runes, and insignia you have is fine. If you want to swap headgear, you can apply superior runes matching the attribute of the skill you wish to boost. Armor rating does not matter unless you want to use Spirit Bond, and Kamadan and Shing Jea have the cheapest. I use one superior rune of each attribute for easier build flexibility, and I also have a headpiece with a corresponding superior rune of each attribute.