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Keeper of cheese, useful things, and lost buttons
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Equipment Guide for Beginners (part 2/2)
(continued ... stupid length limits)
Accessories
What outfit would be complete without some matching accessories? This is true in Norrath as well as outside! You wouldn't leave your house without your wallet, credit cards, keys, glasses, and any other essentials of life that you might need while you're out. Likewise, you shouldn't consider leaving your home in Norrath without the kind of useful items that you might need while you're out.
Your specific needs will vary depending on your class, but here is a list of strongly suggested items to check before you leave home:- invisibility totems (totem of the chameleon or totem of the jaguar) (woodworker made) - you need to be about level 30 to use these. *this is a MUST-HAVE item once you can use them, if your class can't self-invis*
- a stack of food and drink of the appropriate level: the appropriate level is whatever your adventure level is, rounded up to the nearest 10. So if you're level 30-39, you should be using food/drink rated for level 40 -- crafted food, not the inferior vendor sold stuff if you can possibly afford it. *Must-have item!*
- enough coin to mend your armour. *Must-have item!*
- any reagents that you may need for spells (e.g. odyssey stones for clerics). *Must-have item!*
- totem of the otter, or fish bone earring, if your class doesn't have underwater breathing buffs.
- healing potions (alchemist made).
- power regen potions (alchemist made).
- totem of power/health regen, depending on your class's needs (woodworker made).
- ranged items (arrows, shurikens, etc.) if your class uses them.
- poisons if your class uses them.
- rosewood patch kit (if you're level 60+ and going raiding).
- any other utility items you may have, such as Tarton's Wheel, clicky nuke items, etc.
In conclusion - Be prepared
If you've read this far, it's time to look over on your inventory window in EQ2 and see how you measure up. Do all your equipment items do something valuable for you? Is there any that's really not helping? Do you have any items more than 10 levels below your adventure level? Check you're using all your equipment slots. Are you wasting your charm slots with potions or totems? A pair of hex dolls could be adding +18 or more to your stats, if you're over level 10! Contact your local tailor for details. Are you a crusader with an empty ranged slot? You have been able to put a Symbol in there for nearly a year now, and that's a slot wasted that could be giving you some stats!
Create some broker searches for your next tier's armour/jewellery and save them, so that every time you pass a broker you can quickly load your saved searches and see if any interesting new items or bargains have come up. Any time you're bored and in town, browse through the broker to see what equipment is there that might be an improvement for you.
Harvest those rares, and keep your eye on broker prices so you can pick up bargains if you see a good one. Send them to the crafters in the guild to make you rare armour. Not sure what to do with those rares? Check this guide.
Understand what the stats are and what they do for your class.
Understand that you need to be prepared to replace your armour every 10 levels. And that you should never be wearing equipment rated more than 10 levels below you -- with VERY few exceptions that are almost all heritage quests.
Equipment of a higher tier is almost always significantly better than equipment that you were able to wear from the lower tier. Therefore, as you are coming to the end of a tier, you should be starting to think about getting some new armour ready and waiting for when you hit that new level, be it 20, 30, 40, 50, or 60. It can take some time to assemble a new set of equipment, so don't wait until you ding and THEN start thinking about it -- be prepared, and you won't have to spend your first few levels in a new tier running around in outdated equipment, performing under par.
This is particularly true for tanks. If you are normally the tank in your group, it is your primary responsibility to be able to tank as well as possible, and that means you should never settle for less than the best armour you can wear and afford. If you can't afford the rare or legendary armour right away, at least buy a set of the common crafted armour when you reach your new tier, as the mitigation will be much better than the previous tier. Prices on this are so low at the moment, there's absolutely no excuse not to pick up a set as a temporary measure while you work towards some rares.
But every class should be watching their armour, constantly looking for upgrades, constantly seeking to ensure they are wearing the best they can afford. And then you can be confident that you are playing your class as the best that you can be.
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