Curse

Thanato · Jun 29, 2005, 05:48 PM // 17:48

now this is far from a perfect build but i do enjoy using it the random pvp arenas

Earth Magic - 10
Expertise - 13 (12 + 1 (minor rune)
Wilderness Survival - 13 (10 + 3 (sup rune) + 1 (mask)

Armor - Druids
Weapon - +10 energy staff

Skills
Barbed Trap
Flame Trap
Throw Dirt
Spike Trap {E}
Aftershock
Ressurection Signet
Crystal Wave/Dryder's Defense/Troll Unguent
Whirling Defense

now if you hadnt noticed, i have no marksmanship whatsoever. i feel as a pure trapper, there's no need to use a bow. Instead i use a decent +10 energy staff (until i get an earth wand and off hand focii)

The main point of this build is to slow/annoy your enemies, and assist your teammates. It can be used both offensively and defensively. I'd usually stick close to the casters on my team, and protect them from the charging wamo's. This is where throw dirt is really useful (of course). Throw a few traps down, knock em down with spike trap and follow up with aftershock and they'll be running (or limping) away.

Once we start to have an advantage, i'll start to trap more offensively. i'll begin to go after the casters (be it a monk/ele/nec/mes) cutting off the routes they try to take with traps, and if they do decide to stand there and take the traps, its basically the same concept, lay traps, condition them well, knockdown and aftershock. Crystal wave is there for some armor ignoring damage in case its needed (though i do cycle it out with troll unguent and dryder's defense).

Of course you'll still have to be careful about being hit during trap setting, so whirling defense/throw dirt is essential. and despite being in melee range i'm usually not targetted until i really start to hurt them.

As i said before, this build is far from perfect, but i had some success with it and wanted to share it with everyone, and possibly help improve upon its faults (mainly self healing since there isnt any, or not very much with troll unguent)

Thanato · Jun 30, 2005, 05:18 AM // 05:18

bump to the top~

someone gotta have some advice or feedback on this no?

Minwanabi · Jun 30, 2005, 05:21 AM // 05:21

Rearrange your attributes so expertise is at 14. That's the magic number when 10en skills become 4, and 5 become 2.

Thanato · Jun 30, 2005, 05:48 AM // 05:48

hmm
i could get the expertise mask and add in a sup WS, gets my expetise to 14 but drops my WS to 12, not that bad a loss

i'll play around with my atributes~

Enigmatics · Jun 30, 2005, 08:28 PM // 20:28

Expertise to 14 and replace spike trap with oath shot so you can spam traps more.

Thanato · Jun 30, 2005, 09:30 PM // 21:30

ah, but you forget, oath shot needs a bow.

i prefer using a staff for the extra energy (this build is slightly energy heavy) and plus with no marksmanship, so i'd be stuck using a no req bow (not exactly the most stellar damage, despite it only being needed for oath shot. i probably get more from my earth staff)

as for the expertise, i'll have a look see

Enigmatics · Jun 30, 2005, 09:38 PM // 21:38

Hm, didn't know you forego bows. as for that, you won't have as much damage, but more energy. It's a trade off, and trappers don't have a high damage output in the first place.

Thanato · Jun 30, 2005, 10:47 PM // 22:47

well this isnt a pure trapper persay, i throw in an earth spell or 2, and that helps quite abit, especially when they clump together and ignore me. I find its more of a hybrid build. i dubbed it "melandru's wrath" lol. mainly since i'm a ranger, and melandru is the goddess of earth and nature; quite fitting i'd say.

as for my damage output, i can get 10~20 damage from my staff on a soft target, 10 ish max on a warrior. Your right in saying that there isnt much damage involved, mostly DoT and conditions, but aftershock and crystal wave are quite the life saver (or is that life taker?) in the proper circumstances.

There were many instances where i helped fend off 2 wamo's wailing on the caster (or monk) of my group and send them limping for their lives after i got through with em

. Or if one tries to use healing signet, a wall timed crystal wave can do 140 damage (with my current earth attribute of 10)

i'm by no means the main offense of my team, i merely annoy targets and supplement my attacker's damage

Quintus · Jun 30, 2005, 10:47 PM // 22:47

I suggest swiching Whirling Defence for Serpent's Quickness, (This will help you spam traps without getting Oath Shot.) and switching either Res Signet or "Crystal Wave/Dryder's Defense/Troll Unguent" for Glyph of Concentration. (This will help you with the interrupts that trappers have to deal with.)

Other than that you might want to think about switching Throw Dirt for Dust Trap, just for the extra damage that Dust Trap allows.

(With 14 Expertise, Throw Dirt "Blinds" for 15 Seconds with a 5 Energy Cost and 30 Second Recharge (With Serpent's Quickness) and with 13 Wilderness Survival Dust Trap "Blind" for 10 Seconds and deals 60 Damage for 11 Energy and 20 Second Recharge. (With Seprpent's Quickness) Over a 2-minute period, with throw dirt you enemies would be blinded for 60 Seconds and with Dust Trap they also would be blinded for 60 Seconds. So the only real difference would be with energy costs. (Not a big problem with Expertise, a staff, and a full Druid's set.)

Enigmatics · Jun 30, 2005, 10:49 PM // 22:49

Lol. Fine with me -I'm a cynic with untested builds, so I frequently give new ones hard times. Or maybe it's because I broke my spleen today. Nah, it's cause i'm a cynic.

Kishin · Jun 30, 2005, 10:58 PM // 22:58

Glyph of Concentration only helps with spells. You're thinking of Mantra of Concentration, the Mesmer stance which protects you from the next interrupt.

Also, to the OP: Why not drop something for Ward against Foes, for more snaring (its a very traplike effect in itself)

Thanato · Jun 30, 2005, 11:01 PM // 23:01

well its partially tested in pvp, i've been using it the past week or so. with a competent group, my build kind of shines (its not very glossy),

one of the better parts is that empathy, blind, weakness are useless on me

since i dont attack directly

ps: sorry to hear about your spleen

Thanato · Jun 30, 2005, 11:09 PM // 23:09

Quote:

Originally Posted by Quintus

I suggest swiching Whirling Defence for Serpent's Quickness, (This will help you spam traps without getting Oath Shot.) and switching either Res Signet or "Crystal Wave/Dryder's Defense/Troll Unguent" for Glyph of Concentration. (This will help you with the interrupts that trappers have to deal with.)

Other than that you might want to think about switching Throw Dirt for Dust Trap, just for the extra damage that Dust Trap allows.

(With 14 Expertise, Throw Dirt "Blinds" for 15 Seconds with a 5 Energy Cost and 30 Second Recharge (With Serpent's Quickness) and with 13 Wilderness Survival Dust Trap "Blind" for 10 Seconds and deals 60 Damage for 11 Energy and 20 Second Recharge. (With Seprpent's Quickness) Over a 2-minute period, with throw dirt you enemies would be blinded for 60 Seconds and with Dust Trap they also would be blinded for 60 Seconds. So the only real difference would be with energy costs. (Not a big problem with Expertise, a staff, and a full Druid's set.)

as much as serpents quickness would help me in terms of recharge, i do need some kind of defense when they finally begin to attack me directly. i cant exactly depend on troll unguent for survival.

i got no problems with my spells being interrupted, unless they can react to spells with a 3/4 second cast time (possible but still difficult)

as for dust trap, i find it a bit too costly, not to mention it can be interrupted. its usually throw dirt, followed by some traps, and if they insist on hounding after me after blind has worn off, whirling defense is there to offer some minor evasion.

EDIT
a +10 energy staff and druid's armor gets me 41 energy, which is usually enough, until i begin to spam my traps. aftershock kind of eats up my energy in a hurry. if i play it more supportive then a gung-ho trapper, i've got no problems with energy management.

Quintus · Jun 30, 2005, 11:46 PM // 23:46

Quote:

Originally Posted by Thanato

as much as serpents quickness would help me in terms of recharge, i do need some kind of defense when they finally begin to attack me directly. i cant exactly depend on troll unguent for survival.

i got no problems with my spells being interrupted, unless they can react to spells with a 3/4 second cast time (possible but still difficult)

as for dust trap, i find it a bit too costly, not to mention it can be interrupted. its usually throw dirt, followed by some traps, and if they insist on hounding after me after blind has worn off, whirling defense is there to offer some minor evasion.

EDIT
a +10 energy staff and druid's armor gets me 41 energy, which is usually enough, until i begin to spam my traps. aftershock kind of eats up my energy in a hurry. if i play it more supportive then a gung-ho trapper, i've got no problems with energy management.

1. Blinding someone is a better defence than Whiling Defence, so you shouldn't have too much of a need for it. Also Rangers are one of the last classes targeted in PvP, which means that defence is even less of a priority.

2. I haven't tested it personally, but from what I understand Glyph of Concentration also prevents traps from being interrupted.

3. I had a long arguement showing how Dust Trap is worth it but after I did the math, I found that, because of the increased energy cost, you would do more damage without Dust Trap than you would with it. So you are right about keeping Throw Dirt.

Thanato · Jul 01, 2005, 08:42 AM // 08:42

Quote:

Originally Posted by Quintus

1. Blinding someone is a better defence than Whiling Defence, so you shouldn't have too much of a need for it. Also Rangers are one of the last classes targeted in PvP, which means that defence is even less of a priority.

2. I have tested it personally, but from what I understand Glyph of Concentration also prevents traps from being interrupted.

3. I had a long arguement showing how Dust Trap is worth it but after I did the math, I found that, because of the increased energy cost, you would do more damage without Dust Trap than you would with it. So you are right about keeping Throw Dirt.

blinding someone would be the be the best defense apart from not having them attack you at all. i keep whirling defense as a backup seeing as some people will end up targetting me. i usually end up in the fray, and by then some players do end up targetting me (and at times 2 people on me :| )

as for the glyph, it states the next "spell" i cast cant be interrupted. traps arent comsidered as spells (to my knowledge). i havent had the chance to try it out, but unless the description is misleading, i'll have to take your word for it. but i dont really find its worth the skill slot IMO. if i had a long cast spell (meteor shower or wantnot) then it might be worth it, but as it stands, i doubt i'd add it in.

ps: pardon if my grammar is a bit off, but its 20 to 5 and i just came back from a night of debauchery lol

Thanato · Jul 04, 2005, 04:16 PM // 16:16

Bumpo~

Neo-LD · Jul 04, 2005, 06:22 PM // 18:22

I didnt think crystal wave was a player-usable skill... its not on the ranger or elementalist skill lists. I thought this was just something glint used.

Thanato · Jul 04, 2005, 07:05 PM // 19:05

nope, elementalists do have it.

the skill trainer in maguuma stade has it~
you might be thinking crystal hibernation

Enigmatics · Jul 05, 2005, 01:35 PM // 13:35

Blind is less environmentally aware. If you charge into isolated warriors and blind one, the others will just keep attacking you. Same applies with rangers.

WNxInterceptor · Jul 05, 2005, 01:42 PM // 13:42

I would think that crystal wave would help your enemies more than hinder them (unless it's used to finish them off). I say this simply because the 80-90 damage it will be doing is plenty easy to heal, and since you're a trapper, you will pretty much have your targets stacked with Conditions. If you crystal wave them, they are cured of all negative conditions.. this just doesn't seem like something a trapper would want.