What am I doing wrong ?

Dator · 08-17-2009, 07:49 PM

First of all, I'm pretty new to EQ2. (I've played EQ1 for 10 years though)
I have a level 50 SK (65 AA), levelling him was easy, hell I even took down blue heroics, completing orange solo quests was no issue.

Thing is, I dont like tank archetypes, my EQ1 main was an enchanter. So I created a coercer as I really like the concept of mindcontrolling mobs and use them as pets.

Problem is charm seems to beak so often that it seems more of a pain than anything else. Yes, I read all the guides about charming mobs. I spent my first 5 AAs in coercer tree (improve charm) to minimize the risk of breaking. I got a master charm from a RL friend who's playing EQ2 since release. Subjugation is maxed. Still, I have the impression that the benefit of having a charmed pet is much smaller than danger of a breaking charm. Usually the charm seems to break while I'm pulling other mobs ... so for the moment I dont use charm at all, except for seperating linked mobs.

Which brings me to another problem. I have a much harder time to handle multi-mob encounters with my coercer than with my shadowknight.
I usually start the fight with my aoe mezz. This mezz seems to get resisted a lot, so I have to stun/root those mobs resisting the mezz. If I get another resist, which happens quite often, I'm already in trouble ...
Heroic mobs (even greens) I dont even bother to try, 2 resists and I'm kissing dirt ...

My coercer is only lvl 45 (54 AA), so I probaly still miss some important tools, but he seems so weak compared to my shadowknight (they have equal gear/spells thanks to my friend).

What's wrong ?

Awaka · 08-18-2009, 11:21 AM

I have played a Paladin and Enchanter in eq1 and Paladin/ Coercer in eq2 since game release.

I will tell you this the coercer at lvl 45 with 54 aa's will have a tough time soloing heroics - your gear probably isn't the best and at that lvl heroics really aren't meant to be solo'ed but can be. Your a squishy now. You say your spells are similiar to your SK but that doesn't matter as much the plate tank will always be able to absorb a lot of DPS - also Sk's are the badest class in this game currently - nerf is coming. They can take a lot of dmg and do a lot of dmg which is why you find soloing in the SK easier.

In order to solo as a coercer - there is great information in the FAQ's at the top of this board - you need more than max subj by getting +subj gear and there probably wont be a lot at that lvl range your charmed pets will break it's going to happen - this gets much less frustrating when your in your 60's. Getting Expert/Master choices for Awe line and Single target mez line will help immensly with the resists.

Keep in mind soloing heroics wasn't meant to done by everyone esp. in just okay gear and spell quality.

Chrome · 08-18-2009, 11:30 AM

So a character that wears cloth doesn't seem as strong as someone who wears plate, and can self heal/lifetap? lol They don't have equal gear/spells at all.

I never really bothered charming while leveling unless I was chain suiciding pets to get down to named in dungeons.

What's your rotation at the moment? Do you just fling out spells and hope to kill them before they kill you or do you take your time with some root & nuke? You can't solo a Coercer like an SK. Have to keep your distance. Use your stuns, chain them along. Medusa Gaze for a few seconds, then hit your encounter stun when that's about to wear off, then Silence & Ego Shock (or whatever they changed the name to lol) for a daze/stifle combo that works just like a stun.

Also, at 65 you can get a crap pet that doesn't break, but useful for triggering Hostage.

agressiv · 08-18-2009, 12:12 PM

I've found that when you charm casters, they tend to break much more often than say, a guardian pet.

Its just part of the risk that goes with it; use your leveling as your means of coping with resists/breaks etc, it makes soloing at level 80 much easier.

agressiv

BobDBuilder · 08-18-2009, 02:46 PM

Nothing. And FWIW, having a charmed pet isnt all that much better than the Possess Essence you get at 65. Having an more advanced version of charm only makes your pets dps slightly higher and lowers the risk of early breaking. Charm is definitely not like it used to be. You cannot charm a L80 mob, then use the mob to solo another L80 mob, it wont be close, not even by a long shot. Charm is mainly a tool to help you split encounters and to keep you company until 65 (that's when you get possess essence). The rewards are definitely not worth having a blue or better ^^^ heroic pet that could break at any time.

Dictate · 08-18-2009, 02:47 PM

If you have an aoe mezz then you're an Illusionist.

Cydonia · 08-18-2009, 03:43 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Dictate

If you have an aoe mezz then you're an Illusionist.

/giggle

agressiv · 08-18-2009, 04:36 PM

Corpse Flames and Servants of Mistmoores > any PE Pet.

Valdrane · 08-18-2009, 07:23 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Dictate

If you have an aoe mezz then you're an Illusionist.

Or you're using Pure Awe. Pull your head out.

Revel · 08-19-2009, 01:50 AM

Soloing as a coercer or any pet class can be frustrating. I personally hated my pet when I was leveling up the first time as a coercer, and just soloed stuff by root/stuns.

Which brings me to my advice, which is to try using more roots and stuns and daze to control damage. Get used to timing it so you can fit in 1-2 spells between the stun and the next spell, and then root when you have nothing else up. You can add a pet in after that. Yes, it's more work and more preparation (to make sure your path is clear) than an SK which just runs in and smacks stuff. All tanks are much better soloers until you get to the hardest stuff.

For ae stuff, you can start with mez but I just ae them all as best I can, since you get 2 ae stuns and 1 ae daze, if you can output enough damage you should be able to do it, but I don't remember exactly how it was at your level.