An Incident and Questions

[Toadhailys Boazzaenth]

Thanks for the reply, gkoster, and the link to the older post; the section on Attributes, in particular, was very helpful.

Having looked at all the damage ranges for all of the various abilities a small, pink hatchling has, it appears that I went from "under-performing" to "performing normally" after I added those 12 TP; the damage amounts I'm dealing out are consistent with what I should be doing, at my level, and with the scales and claw I have...the damage amounts seem to have been *low* before adding those TP.

Why there was such a dramatic change, I have no idea...and, despite several knowledgeable folks telling me that it can't have happened, I must insist that it did... and I'm not complaining!

Thank you, also, for the very clear description of what a "melee dragon" is...or, how it works, perhaps. I'm now nearly 4-levels above where I was when I suddenly became more lethal, and I've been adding my TP to T/C and Strength, for the most part, and have been very pleased. I'll also be adding TP to Dexterity, although not in large amounts...I like being able to dodge physical attacks!

Thanks, again!

Toadhailys

[pevil2000]

Hi Toadhailys

I can't really say anything more on the sudden jump in your effectiveness, other than as gkoster suggests your previous ruxus may have been level 27 and the following one level 24 for example.

However if you're interested in dragon builds I love these guides. Of course they are just guides, feel free to do what you enjoy the most!

http://istaraschosen.com/guides/

[Guaran]

Welcome to Istaria

You asked for a melee dragon where your training points should go. My recommendation is to max out t&c (so half of all tp's you get each level), then put 2/3 of what's left into evasion, and the remainder into Primal. Many will say that points in evasion don't help, but it does. It's not immediately noticeable, but by level 100 it will be helping. Evasion is one of those stats that has very few ways to be increased. Some newer (T5 only, drag-to-apply) techs can increase it, but it's by relatively small amounts (+16) at the expense of a t&c tech or something else.

Evasion means the monster misses you more often. You are still going to get hit (why most think it does nothing). By level 100, 400 tp's into evasion means taking about 10% less melee damage on average. But it really shines in epic hunts when the boss misses you with something big that kills half your group. But you are still alive! Pop a heal quickly, res a buddy, keep on fighting. Many many times in epic hunts, my Dragon is one of the last standing (if not the last) and it's due to putting points in evasion (partly anyway).

Dex is 1/3 as effective as weapon skill (t&c for dragons) in to-hit chance as the skill itself, 1/3 as effective as evasion in dodging incoming melee, and increases the minimum damage you do (shrinks the damage 'range' produced by the randomizing of the damage each hit does, by bringing up the lower number in the range. By how much I don't know as Smeglors post doesn't explain it fully). But you don't want to put points in Dex to get evasion. Putting all you can as a level 100 player into Dex, 600 points adds +150 dex, which if I remember right adds 6 evasion... wasteful way to add evasion. You get the other mentioned benefits, but not in amounts large enough to be effective. (Players have tried making a full on dex buffed dragon with poor results).

The good thing about training points, is that you can move them around and try different combinations. Spreading them out too much among different skills winds up ineffective.

If you make a spellcasting dragon, you will want to max out primal, put 1/3 of remainder into t&c (you will still use claw attacks on occasion), and 2/3 of the remainder into evasion. Since a primal dragon can heal a little better though, you should experiment. Maybe dump them all into magic evasion.

Whatever you do, it is always a good idea to give it a week once you try a training point layout, to really get a feel for the effects. Then switch then up, give it another week to see what you notice. Most changes are not immediately felt or obvious (putting points in evasion), but over time you can see the difference and appreciate them.

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Regarding your ruxus hunting, if I had to guess I would echo what the others have said, you went from a higher level one to a lower level one. Each level does add t&c skill, strength, tooth&claw mastery (might not be exact name), and one of those passive abilities that only changes every so often probably also increased to its' next stage.

[Toadhailys Boazzaenth]

Thanks, Guaran, another very clear explanation of one of the Attributes, and your suggestion to put 1/2 of my TP into T/C and 2/3 of what's left into Evasion is something I hadn't heard before...I'll give that a try, as you advise, for a week or so to see how it feels.

Quick question about Dexterity...does it (or, anything else!) influence my speed on the ground? I'm just under DRAG 30, and don't plan on attempting my RoP until I'm at 50/50, so, being able to outrun nasties is important to me!

I'm now about 4 levels above where I was when I noticed that sudden jump in damage, and I've been putting TP into T/C, so, it's hard to make comparisons. But, I need to stress, the "change" has been permanent...it's not just with Ruxus but with everything I've fought since then: the damage I'm dealing out now reflects, much more closely, what the "details" of each ability say I should be getting. Before the "change," I was definitely NOT reaching those numbers.

I *think* I may have found the "solution," but need a few days to experiment, get a good feel for what I now think may have happened.

And, finally, once again I want to thank everyone for the replies. I'm finding this game fascinating, on many levels, and a great deal of my enjoyment has come from the interaction with the small, but incredibly friendly players!

Toadhailys

[Guaran]

Speed techs on wings, gift of speed, runspeed potions, and a few foods like cotton candy are all that affect movement speed outside of sprint. There are tool crystals with small bumps to speed as well, but they are hard to find and only equip in tool claws.

But no, nothing training point related affects speed.

Have fun experimenting

Once you get your dragon to Ancient, try a biped or 2. They can master abilities from different classes, which means you can use them when not in the school, which means you can pick and choose and build a character up with skills for various schools. It's like a whole different game.

[Toadhailys Boazzaenth]

Okay, thanks, Guaran....Yeah, my "plan" is to get to level 50/50 before my RoP...I'd like to get the level 50 hatchling scale, plus, I just want to take time to really get to know Istaria, especially the lore. I don't plan - at the moment - to do much lair-shaping until I've reached Ancient, but, that could certainly change, once I reach Adulthood...and, after THAT, I'll delve into one of the biped races...

Should all be a lot of fun!