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11-20-2003, 06:01 PM

oh, hermit boy, if only wiz 8 was that simple! i'll tell you what i know "in principle", but with the caveat that, on a practical level, i've yet to develop a samurai i love...

1) bloodlust causes the attacker to always attack in beserk mode. while this can add swings and damage, it reduces your chance to hit (due to being wild, i suppose).

with a fighter or rogue you hardly notice it. but hybrids in particular show up this weakness a bit more. there are for two reasons for this.

1a) hybrids start with their attribute points spread out across more stats. notably they have minimums in intelligence or piety, and fewer bonus points. this means they learn skills slower (so have less skill at any point in the game compared to a similarly developed fighter or rogue) AND their attributes arent high enough to compensate for their lower skills. (see point 2 below)

1b) hybrids spread their actions and learning across more skills. when you cast spells in combat, you dont have a chance to learn a point in sword, or close combat, or dual weapons, or critical strike. similarly, when you level up, there's a lot more places that need attention! so, again, their skill development is hampered.

and this is without even mentioning the slower level ups!

2) raw attributes can compensate for low skills. strength, dex, and senses all add to a character's chances to do damage, regardless of weapon (or academic) skill. the largest bonuses come from dex, which adds to your chances to hit and penetrate. strength and senses offer similar bonuses, but they operate slightly differently: senses increases the chances to hit, strength increases the chance to penetrate.

as noted in (1a) above, hybrids have their skills spread across a wide range of stats. as such, they will have less in str, dex, and senses compared to pure melee'rs.

so what does this all mean?

well, regarding development, i would suggest keep pumping dex, first and foremost. and now that you have speed at 90, start putting points into str or senses instead with the other 3 level up points. speed at 90 gives you the +2 to AC, which is the most you'll get there, and getting the benefits of other attributes would seem more prudent compared to opening up snake speed.

personally, i'd recommend strength, for two reasons. the first is that it adds to damage and stamina as well. the more swings you get, the more stamina you need, and since you're primary attack is melee (sword), strength adds a damage multiplier that's really valuable to have.

the second reason is related to my second recommendation regarding weapon. i'd go ahead and keep the bloodlust, but consider putting down the wakizashi for a couple of levels. by going back to one-handed, you'll remove the dual-weapons penalty, which will help your missing problems. this mitigates the need to boost to-hit via building senses.

but dont get me wrong - long-term, you'll want to get that second sword re-equipped. just wait a couple levels (say around 11 or 12), when your skills will be much better, before you put it back on. in the meantime, consider dropping 3 pts at each level up into dual weapons, sword, and close combat.

whew, that's a bit more than i planned to write... sounds good in theory, i wonder why i've never been able to put it in practice?! [img]graemlins/erm.gif[/img]

good luck! [img]smile.gif[/img]

[ 11-20-2003, 06:07 PM: Message edited by: sultan ]

11-20-2003, 06:01 PM	#10
sultan Guest Posts: n/a	oh, hermit boy, if only wiz 8 was that simple! i'll tell you what i know "in principle", but with the caveat that, on a practical level, i've yet to develop a samurai i love... 1) bloodlust causes the attacker to always attack in beserk mode. while this can add swings and damage, it reduces your chance to hit (due to being wild, i suppose). with a fighter or rogue you hardly notice it. but hybrids in particular show up this weakness a bit more. there are for two reasons for this. 1a) hybrids start with their attribute points spread out across more stats. notably they have minimums in intelligence or piety, and fewer bonus points. this means they learn skills slower (so have less skill at any point in the game compared to a similarly developed fighter or rogue) AND their attributes arent high enough to compensate for their lower skills. (see point 2 below) 1b) hybrids spread their actions and learning across more skills. when you cast spells in combat, you dont have a chance to learn a point in sword, or close combat, or dual weapons, or critical strike. similarly, when you level up, there's a lot more places that need attention! so, again, their skill development is hampered. and this is without even mentioning the slower level ups! 2) raw attributes can compensate for low skills. strength, dex, and senses all add to a character's chances to do damage, regardless of weapon (or academic) skill. the largest bonuses come from dex, which adds to your chances to hit and penetrate. strength and senses offer similar bonuses, but they operate slightly differently: senses increases the chances to hit, strength increases the chance to penetrate. as noted in (1a) above, hybrids have their skills spread across a wide range of stats. as such, they will have less in str, dex, and senses compared to pure melee'rs. so what does this all mean? well, regarding development, i would suggest keep pumping dex, first and foremost. and now that you have speed at 90, start putting points into str or senses instead with the other 3 level up points. speed at 90 gives you the +2 to AC, which is the most you'll get there, and getting the benefits of other attributes would seem more prudent compared to opening up snake speed. personally, i'd recommend strength, for two reasons. the first is that it adds to damage and stamina as well. the more swings you get, the more stamina you need, and since you're primary attack is melee (sword), strength adds a damage multiplier that's really valuable to have. the second reason is related to my second recommendation regarding weapon. i'd go ahead and keep the bloodlust, but consider putting down the wakizashi for a couple of levels. by going back to one-handed, you'll remove the dual-weapons penalty, which will help your missing problems. this mitigates the need to boost to-hit via building senses. but dont get me wrong - long-term, you'll want to get that second sword re-equipped. just wait a couple levels (say around 11 or 12), when your skills will be much better, before you put it back on. in the meantime, consider dropping 3 pts at each level up into dual weapons, sword, and close combat. whew, that's a bit more than i planned to write... sounds good in theory, i wonder why i've never been able to put it in practice?! [img]graemlins/erm.gif[/img] good luck! [img]smile.gif[/img] [ 11-20-2003, 06:07 PM: Message edited by: sultan ]