Curse

Shady Wolf · Jan 18, 2009, 11:54 AM // 11:54

(If this isn't in the right area, my mistake- I thought the subject fitting.)

Hello, all,

As evident as it may be that I am a first-time poster, I've come to the experts of AI with a humble request: could anyone offer me advisory on the best way to take a 2-man, 6-hero build into the Fissure of Woe? My goal is to conquer the place, not farm, as I've never beaten the place and would love to see myself victorious over it sometime soon.

Notes:

- I am reasonably sure that any move that I may need for my heroes is within my means, but I lack some critical PVE skills (namely Save Yourselves!, some GW:EN skills, etc). My Elementalist lacks any PVE skill, really, whereas my Warrior has access to Norn PVE, Sunspear PVE, Lightbringer PVE and a handful of Ebon Vanguard and Deldrimor moves (the latter two being low-ranked).

- I've two characters that can reach the Fissure: a Warrior and an Elementalist. My team mate would definitely be a Warrior, but I haven't a preference for which is advised for my use.

- The heroes wouldn't be able to use any of the rare, really powerful weapons, just maxed damage and whatever useful upgrades that I can obtain. Same goes for armor and etc, just maxed with the common, but good runes and insignias.

The reason that I am asking for such advice is really quite simple- there are so many good builds that I can't decide what to take. Three Paragons and three Sabway Necros is tempting, but I don't know of the optimal builds from the old favorites. Honestly, I'm a terrible Guild Wars player whose improvement in the game across 2.5 years of gameplay has been nominal, and I want the moveset that would accomodate me the best.

I would post movesets for a theorized team, but there are so many options that I feel it's simpler to see what advice it is that I receive.

Thanks for any and all suggestions that come forth.

Kinlo · Jan 18, 2009, 02:05 PM // 14:05

Ive done it with:
* 2 Humans: Smiter Monk + Anti-Caster Ranger (Daze, Interrupt).
* 6 Heroes: Sabway heroes + 2 Ele's (If i remember a Blinding Surge + SF/MS nuker) and a Prot Monk.

Took us less than 3 hours to do all quests.
As for the runes/weps they dont matter.

~Kinlo

Songbringer · Jan 18, 2009, 02:36 PM // 14:36

I have done it as well. We simply used 2 man discordway from PvX and the two human bars were a warrior with sy and I ran an SH ele. Though I am 100% sure you could use any two human bars. We did it in HM with Cons, I don't know the time it took us though def not 3 hours.

I am not saying you won't be able to do fow but honestly to me it sounds like you just need to get some characters through the games so you have acess to all the skills and places. Having only two characters at fow and it sounds like niether of them have acess to the end of any campaigns really limits what you can do in PvE with groups. By groups I mean if your guild ever does anything it sounds like you may get left out simply because you can't run the bar or don't have the place.

Shady Wolf · Jan 18, 2009, 02:36 PM // 14:36

Hm...Blinding Surge + SF/MS Nuker? PVX doesn't have that listed...what exactly is that? SH Ele doesn't sound familiar, either. Heh, I'm not up on the argot and abbreviations.

I've been considering a knockdown build with my Warrior, but I've heard that Dragon Slash/Brawling Headbutt is a poor combo. Does anyone have enough experience with the two in tandem that they could vouch for it or oppose it?

mirri · Jan 18, 2009, 02:42 PM // 14:42

Ive done it with:
* 2 Humans: Smiter Monk + Anti-Caster Ranger (Daze, Interrupt).
* 6 Heroes: Sabway heroes + 2 Ele's (If i remember a Blinding Surge + SF/MS nuker) and a Prot Monk.

Took us less than 3 hours to do all quests.
As for the runes/weps they dont matter.

just the same. i was the ranger in this party ^^.

some tips: know the enemies and the qeust of FoW, learn of mistake that you make and never rush or argo too much add once.

you will get a hang of it when you do FoW more often with this setup. GL & HF with it

if you are ele: i advise to take Meteor Shower and other AoE dmg.
if you are W: D-slash with Savage slash.

try to switch a Hero ele with a BHA hero for Dazed for easy interrupts on the casters.

greets silvana

Patsrule711 · Jan 18, 2009, 02:43 PM // 14:43

FoW NM is easy to complete. I would sudgest using your warrior if you can and bring earth shaker. If you dont have ES then you could use a handful of diffrent elites. I see you dont have save yourselves which is too bad but it i still quite possible. If you go HM or NM hex removal is very important there are some nasty hexs in FoW.

Possible set ups: 6 man discord
2 copies of sabway
Some sort of balance would work too

You: Blind bot, SF or SH
hero: BHA ranger
hero: WoH hybrid
hero: SS Nec
Player 2: earth shaker, dragon slash ect
hero: Woh hybrid, divert hex, shield of deflection
hero:sf ele
hero:Minion master

I just threw that together and some one will rip it to shreds but it gives you an idea

SF= searing flames
Sh= searing heat
WoH=word of healing
SS=spiteful spirt
BHA= broad head arrow
Blind bot= air ele with blinding surge(i think thats what its called)

Songbringer · Jan 18, 2009, 02:54 PM // 14:54

Links to the builds we talked about.

SH ele- http://www.pvxwiki.com/wiki/Build:E/any_SH_Elementalist

SF ele- http://www.pvxwiki.com/wiki/Build:E/...s_Elementalist
On this one just insert glyph sac and meteor shower into optionals to get ms..only glyph sac the ms because of its 5 sec cast.

BSurge ele- http://www.pvxwiki.com/wiki/Build:E/Rt_PvE_Bsurge
On this one you don't have to take a /rt secondary throw in whatever optionals you want. However if playing with a warrior friend I suggest keeping splinter weapon because it is so amazing.

Two Man Discord- http://www.pvxwiki.com/wiki/Build:Te...Man_Discordway This is basically hm on easy mode. You call a target the heroes will hex it up and conditions on it then they spike the shit out of it with discord pretty much insta killing it. If you don't want to wait for them to put the condition and hex on then take the caller bar from the one man version of that build it is on wiki to go find it. If you roll ele then take glyph of lesser energy to help with energy since AP won't be enough if the batlle goes on to long. You wil use glyph then ap then rest of chain everytime. Also take Glyph Sac and Meteor shower as other two optionals to help.

As for a KD lock don't use a sword warrior for something hammers are so much better for. Just a couple amazing kd hammer bars from wiki

http://www.pvxwiki.com/wiki/Build:W/...E_Earth_Shaker

http://www.pvxwiki.com/wiki/Build:W/any_Hundred_PvE This isn't a kd bar but since buff to Hundred Blades it is freaking amazing.

http://www.pvxwiki.com/wiki/Build:W/...stating_Hammer

Sorry for all the bars from wiki. I would give you my bars but I am to lazy to log into gw's for this. Plus you prolly won't be able to run mine since they have PvE only skills in them.

Improvavel · Jan 18, 2009, 03:00 PM // 15:00

Well FoW isn't an hard area in nm (in hm hexes can be a bit of a problem)- the main concern with groups based on heroes are the maelstroms from skeletal ice hands (spreading the heroes before engaging should solve it) and meteor showers chains by hydras (again spreading for the win).

For your warrior bud, I would recommend a hammer build - [Flail][Whirlwind attack][Earth Shaker][Crushing Blow][Crude Swing][For Great Justice]. Optional skills could be [Enraging Charge] [Distracting Blow] and/or resurrect and PvE-only skills of choice.

Sample Hero builds:
[build prof=Ne/Ri name="Order" Sou=11+2 Blo=10+1 Cha=10][Order of Pain][Dark Fury][Life Transfer][Masochism][Foul Feast][Signet of Lost Souls][Splinter Weapon][Flesh of my Flesh][/build]

[build prof=Ne/Ri name="Discord healer1" Sou=8+1 Dea=10+2 Res=12][Discord][Putrid Bile][Signet of Lost Souls][Mend Body and Soul][Spirit Light][Protective Was Kaolai][Life][Flesh of my Flesh][/build]

[build prof=Ne/Ri name="Discord Healer2" Sou=8+1 Dea=10+2 Res=12][Discord][Putrid Bile][Signet of Lost Souls][Weapon of Warding][Mend Body and Soul][Spirit Light][Protective Was Kaolai][Flesh of my Flesh][/build]

[build prof=Ne/Mo name="Minion Master" Sou=8+1 Dea=12+4 Pro=10][Discord][Animate Shambling Horror][Animate Bone Fiend][Death Nova][Signet of Lost Souls][Aegis][Convert Hexes][Remove Hex][/build]

[build prof=Ne/Mo name="Curser" Sou=8+1 Dea=10+4 Pro=10][Discord][Barbs][Enfeebling Blood][Shadow of Fear][Weaken Armor][Signet of Lost Souls][Aegis][Convert Hexes][/build]

[build prof=Mo/Ri name="FoW healing monk" Div=12+1 Hea=12+2 Pro=3][Word of Healing][Dwaynas Kiss][Patient Spirit][Protective Spirit][Dismiss Condition][Spotless Mind][Cure Hex][Flesh of my Flesh][/build]

[build prof=Ne/Mo name="Discord Protector" Sou=8+1 Dea=10+2 Pro=12][Discord][Foul Feast][Shield of Absorption][Spirit Bond][Protective Spirit][Aegis][Signet of Lost Souls][Convert Hexes][/build]

[build prof=R/Me name="BHA ranger" Exp=12+2 Mar=12+1][Distracting Shot][Savage Shot][Broad Head Arrow][Volley][Penetrating Attack][Lightning Reflexes][Throw Dirt][Epidemic][/build]

[build prof=P/Mo name="Stunning Strike Paragon" Lea=11+1 Spe=11+2 Command=8+1][Spear of Lightning][Merciless Spear][Stunning Strike][Remove Hex][Go For The Eyes][Anthem of Weariness][Aggressive Refrain][Signet of Return][/build]

These are just some sample builds and ideas for you to toy around. Some stuff is interchangeable, and you really don't need all the healing and the protection out there. The Minion master can easily be replaced by 2 or 3 copies of [[Animate Shambling horror] on the other necros, the monk can easily became an hybrid, the MM can easily slot in spirit bond and so on.

As for you own build, i would bring an earth build. Stuff like, [[Unsteady Ground], [[Eruption] and [[Ward of stability] comes to mind, but so does [[Deep Freeze] and [maelstrom]

Have fun.

Edit: Some skills like [[Life transfer] have changed.

Shady Wolf · Jan 18, 2009, 03:19 PM // 15:19

The KDs and such all seem good, and to me, it seems that maybe God Mode is the best plan for me, in that it's just hack and slash for a while, though the KD effect seems immensely useful. What about [Ursan Blessing]? I know it's pretty overpowered, so am I to assume that no one has mentioned it due to hatred, or is it just unimpressive in FoW?

Improvavel · Jan 18, 2009, 04:39 PM // 16:39

Quote:

Originally Posted by Shady Wolf

What about [Ursan Blessing]? I know it's pretty overpowered, so am I to assume that no one has mentioned it due to hatred, or is it just unimpressive in FoW?

It's damage is unimpressive since the nerf.

And you don't need [[Save yourselves] for FoW. If you go play a warrior, a scythe or a axe warrior seem quite good. Consider to slot in another rank 10+ splinter weapon in that case.

Abedeus · Jan 18, 2009, 05:02 PM // 17:02

Quote:

Originally Posted by Shady Wolf

What about [Ursan Blessing]? I know it's pretty overpowered

Wait wa. what? No it's not.

It's not weaker than a standard Erf Shakur warrior or assassin (hehe) or ranger.

Slash From The Shadows · Jan 18, 2009, 05:03 PM // 17:03

i agree with everything the people above said , and usan blessing kind a sucks after the nerf. it can be still viable though, if you don't have any better options ( which i think you do have) or unless you wanna be the 100armor tank (which won't be very effective)
i sugest you try something else.

EDIT: i do not agree with Abe, but i assume you meant "stronger" not weaker.

masterjer1 · Jan 18, 2009, 07:03 PM // 19:03

[pain inverter] is pretty useful against the Infernal Wurms, especially if you're running a minion master hero. Just make sure everyone is clumped up for the seige attack(don't worry, you will live). Of course you need to have some Asuran rep for this to work. When I did it awhile back with a guildie, we used 3 Sabway necros, 1 SF fire nuker, 2 RC monks heroes. I was the warrior and other was also a SF fire nuker. Only bad part I experienced was losing my conection 2x, but was able to rejoin both times.

Shady Wolf · Jan 19, 2009, 02:44 AM // 02:44

Quote:

Originally Posted by Abedeus

Wait wa. what? No it's not.

It's not weaker than a standard Erf Shakur warrior or assassin (hehe) or ranger.

Just a misconception on my part, then.

I'm considering either a 6-man Sabway build or perhaps Discordway, I haven't quite decided (and haven't the time to try a team tonight, anyway). That said, I am still conflicted about leaving out a BHA Ranger. I've been there a time or two, and know that the casters can be a major pain, so I am not sure that I want to exclude such a potentially important hero. If I went 6-man Sabway, would it perhaps be in my best interest to drop an SS or MM for the Ranger, or at that rate, should I just go 3-man Sabway, BHA, SF Nuker, Prot Monk?

Scarn · Jan 19, 2009, 03:13 AM // 03:13

You don't even need pve skills, just gray mass and hands.

Jeydra · Jan 19, 2009, 05:59 AM // 05:59

Personal experience speaking, you don't need any special tactics or whatever to clear the FoW in NM. Just pick any 8 characters, add two Monks, add some defense / support on some of the other characters (Wards, Aegis, etc), then load up good builds and clear the area.

I'll help you with clearing the area if you like, message me if you see me online.

Quote:

I'm considering either a 6-man Sabway build or perhaps Discordway, I haven't quite decided (and haven't the time to try a team tonight, anyway). That said, I am still conflicted about leaving out a BHA Ranger. I've been there a time or two, and know that the casters can be a major pain, so I am not sure that I want to exclude such a potentially important hero. If I went 6-man Sabway, would it perhaps be in my best interest to drop an SS or MM for the Ranger, or at that rate, should I just go 3-man Sabway, BHA, SF Nuker, Prot Monk?

It doesn't really matter. FoW NM doesn't have particularly stubborn Monks that require BHA to take down. Go with standard builds, and they will die.

Sakura Az · Jan 19, 2009, 06:12 AM // 06:12

Quote:

Originally Posted by Jeydra

Personal experience speaking, you don't need any special tactics or whatever to clear the FoW in NM. Just pick any 8 characters, add two Monks, add some defense / support on some of the other characters (Wards, Aegis, etc), then load up good builds and clear the area.

I'll help you with clearing the area if you like, message me if you see me online.

It doesn't really matter. FoW NM doesn't have particularly stubborn Monks that require BHA to take down. Go with standard builds, and they will die.

seconded this opinon, i run 2person 6 heros teams thru FoW a decent bit all thats special is we carry a bit more hex removal than normal., we just run the 3 Sab necros, a resto.channeling rit, RoJ smiter, and the last spot is totaly random depending on what mood i'm in. players are usualy a sin and a ranger

takes me about an hour and a half to clear in NM, just depends on how many times each of us goes afk durring the run.

Cebe · Jan 19, 2009, 11:12 AM // 11:12

Quote:

Originally Posted by Jeydra

It doesn't really matter. FoW NM doesn't have particularly stubborn Monks that require BHA to take down. Go with standard builds, and they will die.

I would agree with this statement. Fissure of Woe is a piece of cake with 2 humans/6 heroes. So long as you're careful about aggro, especially in the burning forest, it usually all works out fine.

A Blindbot is always handy, either Blinding Surge or Blinding Flash (+ Epidemic), since packs of physicals can potentially wear you down if you are inexperienced. If you wanted to stray further from the usual Discord teams and play something else, I would always consider an Earth Ele in the FoW, since it combines nice offense with great defense through the use of Wards, Weakness and Knockdown.

[build prof=E/N name="Enfeebling Earth" box earth=12+1+1 energy=9+1 curses=9][Earth Attunement][Glyph of Lesser Energy][Ward Against Elements][Unsteady Ground][Enfeebling Blood][Glowstone][Stoning][Eruption][/build]

The above is played rather well by heroes as an example. You could always remove Enfeebling Blood and place it on a Necromancer Hero, meaning you can give your Ele Hero another Ward or a resurrection skill.

I would concur with the advice of others regarding you playing an Earth Shaker build. It is a very powerful and fun Warrior build to play, and means you can keep foes licking floor even more! Make sure you give a hero some decent condition removal though - If I remember correctly there is some irritating blind down there when you're playing a physical.

Shady Wolf · Jan 20, 2009, 03:53 AM // 03:53

So, I had my first real whack at the Fissure today, and failed; ganked by a random group of Shadow Beasts and Shadow etcs. I had completed 6 of 11 quests, and I didn't yet see ancient skales or hydras. I am not sure what else there was for me to see in terms of creatures, though I expect that I missed a few.

All in all, I am rather disappointed with the loss, since my morale was riding rather high after reaching 50%+ of the quests completed. My only notes:

- Blind wasn't a big problem, but a few times it caused a mild hindrance. Nothing that would have shifted the tides of battle, though.

- Margrid was extremely aggressive, despite being on guard. [Throw Dirt] seemed to be here move of choice, and while she could probably survive being in the thick of it, her AI just seemed odd, though I certainly grant that she was as useful as expected for interrupts. I used the BHA ranger set that Improvavel posted, for reference.

- I had some very close calls with the griffons, even though I paved a clear way for them. They nearly died toward the end of that particular quest, so I must ask: is there any advice for killing the spawns for the griffon quest before the griffons actually engage the skeleton groups?

- I realized that I don't have [Earth Shaker], so my Warrior buddy went Save Yourselves! Dragon Slash and I went Dragon Slash with [Brawling Headbutt], which worked surprisingly well for me, despite not using KD a whole lot, anyway. Maybe I should have gone Earth Shaker, though, after getting the Elite.

My team was:

- Me (Warrior) with a Sabway set up

- Warrior buddy with FoW healer Monk and BHA Ranger

- Human-controlled Fire Nuker

Improvavel · Jan 20, 2009, 07:57 PM // 19:57

Quote:

Originally Posted by Shady Wolf

- Margrid was extremely aggressive, despite being on guard. [Throw Dirt] seemed to be here move of choice, and while she could probably survive being in the thick of it, her AI just seemed odd, though I certainly grant that she was as useful as expected for interrupts. I used the BHA ranger set that Improvavel posted, for reference.

- I had some very close calls with the griffons, even though I paved a clear way for them. They nearly died toward the end of that particular quest, so I must ask: is there any advice for killing the spawns for the griffon quest before the griffons actually engage the skeleton groups?

My team was:

- Me (Warrior) with a Sabway set up

- Warrior buddy with FoW healer Monk and BHA Ranger

- Human-controlled Fire Nuker

Yeah my bad about [[throw dirt]. I'm just used to have it disabled most of the time and only use it when I need. The ranger AI is aggressive with it.

If you use [[Discord]'s instead of sabs you will most likely not miss [[Broad Head Arrow] (maybe a bit vs the hydras), especially if you get an [[Earth shaker] warrior.

Another note, don't go to the place where the gryphs spawn after getting the quest. Just keep doing other quests and then clear the way to the tower. Be careful though, sometimes, especially if you had to retreat to the place where the gryphs will spawn after engaging the banshees, the gryphs will run mad to u.

Better luck next time