Curse

I Hate Chips · Sep 16, 2009, 04:44 PM // 16:44

HI guildwarsgurumembers (long word...). Recently I bought Prophecies and after that I bought Factions. I was wondering after playing, Warrior and Elementalist, if monks are a nice option... Asked some friends IG and they told me monks were AWESOME, since I only got prophecies and factions, can I still be a good monk? Am I allot worse than monks who have got all campaigns?

This is my build I use atm, PLEASE comment, and if say my build sucks (which probably will..) PLEASE say what sucks, and with what other skill I might replace (remeber only prophecies and factions skills + core ;D)

Word of Healing
Aegis
Protective spirit
Mend Condition
Signet of Rejuvenation
Dwaynas kiss
Heal party
Glyph of lesser energy

This build I use for pve, first want to learn some basics from monk. After that I will go tot PVP but first need to be good with my monk in PVE, will post a thread later about PVP ;d

Ccat · Sep 16, 2009, 05:34 PM // 17:34

Considering you don't have NF that build isn't bad. Without NF you miss out on Dismiss Condition, a skill that can not only be used as condition removal but also a decent heal. Skills like these hit two birds with one stone. Mend Condition does about the same but Dismiss Condition heals for a tidbit more and relies on enchantments, not conditions. Hardly noticeable.

Problems lie in Heal Party and Signet of Rejuvenation. Whilst Rejuvenation is semi-useful there's not real way to tell what your target is doing and whether they are going to stop doing it. To me it tends to be a bit of an on/off skill. 75% of the time it's good but 25% of the time it's terrible. Also, it can't be spammed so you would be better off (when you get to it) equipping Selfless Spirit instead.

Heal Party is so much for so little and is only really used with Healer's Boon, a skill you don't have access to. Presumably it heals for 72 which is nothing in huge spikes, and the two second cast can sometimes be painful. The build is missing a pressure-relieving skill such as Seed of Life and Shield of Absorption, both of which are in Nightfall... Shielding Hands it has to be. Other than that everything's the right choice. Aegis and Protective Spirit should be on every general Monk bar.

Regarding the former paragraph, Monks are awesome. Frankly I used to think the game sucked but I found Monking (or generally healing) to be the only way I found the game fun. It feels like you're contributing to the team on a much grander scale, and while other professions serve up to a point there will be a time where your party dies and you'll think if you were healing, you would have done something different than the spammy henches. That's at least the reason I am so dedicated to my Monk - the original healers.

Fleeting · Sep 16, 2009, 07:22 PM // 19:22

@OP- Your bar is fine, though I recommend swapping in Mend Ailment for Mend Condition, as Mend Ailment is usable on self.

Consider dropping Heal Party entirely for another Prot or utility skill, like Shielding Hands (very nice after the recent buff). HP isn't all that impressive without something like Unyielding Aura or Healer's Boon to pump it up.

Signet of Rejuvenation is fine so long as you're careful about its use on non-physicals. You can assume a Ranger/War/Assassin/Para will be attacking (thus always meeting the condition for additional healing), but you'll want to wait a moment and time the signet to hit a caster while they're using something for maximum effect.

Alternatively, you could drop the signet entirely for Reversal of Fortune, a spell that I think every monk should make friends with.

Edited because parenthesis don't like me.

I Hate Chips · Sep 16, 2009, 09:26 PM // 21:26

After ur usefull tips I came up to replace signet of rejunevation for RoF. And heal party for shielding hands, would it be better if I add selfless spirit in the build? For more energy support, if yes ;D for what skill should I replace it: shielding hands/ RoF / or Glyph of lesser energy (since this is another skill for energy support).

Ccat · Sep 16, 2009, 10:29 PM // 22:29

Shielding Hands is needed for pressure and if used properly GoLE + Selfless Spirit means no energy management problems. RoF is not a bonafide heal and is conditional. You have a big chunky heal every 3 seconds and condition removal + healing every 2 seconds, which is not really enough to heal two or more targets who are taking fire with no conditions though. It would have to be GoLE in that case, because if all you've got is a heal every 3 seconds you can rely on, that can really suck.

Age · Sep 17, 2009, 12:54 AM // 00:54

I would use something different for pvp though.

J I L T · Sep 17, 2009, 04:00 AM // 04:00

I'd keep signet of rejuvenation on there because it's a quick free spammable heal. Granted there is no guarantee the requirement will be met but the same can be said for word of healing and dwayna's kiss. While you can just look at a bar and see who meets the requirements for woh and kiss the mere fact that rejuvenation is free more than makes up for it being weaker sometimes. A penny saved is a penny earned when it comes to monking.

I'd keep heal party too what Ccat said was kind of contradictory saying to get rid of heal party but then take an anti pressure skill. Heal party is your best option for aoe pressure and the 2 second cast isn't a big deal if you use it at the right time. It's not for spikes it's for aoe pressure and when used right can save a lot of energy and time.

I'd actually run a full healing or protection build personally. If you have 2 monks in the group there just isn't much of a point in splitting attributes. Plus 2 monks could easily do the same thing like cast protective spirit or woh on the same person which just wastes energy and time, the 2 things most valuable to monks. Plus that person who got a double dose of healing or protection could possibly die anyway because sometimes people need both at the same time. A lot of people will disagree and say hybrids are always better or something.

Burst Cancel · Sep 17, 2009, 04:56 PM // 16:56

With only Prophecies and Factions you're missing Patient Spirit, Shield of Absorption, and Cure Hex. SoA is by far the most important spell on that list, as there isn't a good substitute for it. That said, you can still build a workable WoH hybrid:

WoH
Dwayna's Kiss
Reversal of Fortune/Guardian
Prot Spirit/Spirit Bond
Remove Hex
Mend Ailment/Mend Condition/Draw Conditions
Aegis
Shielding Hands/Guardian

Draw/Mend Condition is better than Mend Ailment if there is other condition removal in your party. If your party has an MM and Foul Feast, you can drop condition removal altogether and bring Dwayna's Sorrow. In physical-heavy areas, Guardian will prevent more damage on average than RoF or SH, especially in Hard Mode, although it's less useful if the party has a good source of weakness.