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Starting Vanguard the right way: A quick newcomers guide
Khaunshar
Member UncommonPosts: 349
Hi there,
First of all, if you are one of the Vanguard haters,please dont feel obliged to spam your hatred. The game isnt for everyone, and has issues for sure. This thread is to help people who want to at least have a look at it to get it right, and see the game from an entertaining side, avoiding the worst issues and getting to the meat quickly.
Starting Out: Race and Class
This is the second-biggest choice for your Vanguard life. Only the choice of continent will impact your initial gameplay more, and later on, class and race obviously make or break your enjoyment. If you are new to the MMO genre, or new to the design school of Vanguard (meaning you havent played WoW, DAOC, EQ1+2, FFXI or any of the other big fantasy MMORPGs) I would advise to stay away from the following classes, as they are rather special spin-offs of other classes, and dont teach the basic concepts very well, or are just plain complicated:
Blood Mage, Bard, Disciple, Psionicist.
For race, this affects your faction (meaning how many other races NPCs will try to kill you) and partially class choice. All the racials have their place, but 2 of notice are the Kojani Human one, which is currently extremely powerful for close fights in groups (as you can basically reload some classes completely on mana with it) and the dark elven one, which doesnt mesh well with pet classes as it calls a little fun pet wyvern, and is not acquired before level 8.
Orcs, Goblins, Dark Elves and partially Kurashasa have serious faction issues and will require some work to enter the major towns and ports.
Race also affects your newbie zone, and these are widely differring in terms of content, fun, and especially looks. I will list a few highlights to help decision:
Varanthari get a unique, race-specific questline that results in a free level 7 usable horse. Its the ONLY way to get a free horse outside diplomacy, and the crafter rentals.
Kojani Humans and Half Elves have a VERY well-done beginning, a real storyline to their quests, and one of the most stunning sceneries (a green bamboo forest, think "House of Flying Daggers" during their teens. THeir quests are fairly linear if you liked that from WoW, too)
Varanjar, Vulmane and Lesser Giants share a "rocky mountains" looking area, which is not only pleasant to the eye, but allows for easy movement between their newbie zones, giving you the pick of the 3.
Thestran Humans, Dwarves and Halflings have a very generic, and often laggy area that is the "same old" of other games. I dont recommend starting out there if you have played any other MMO fantasy game and want something new.
High Elves have a very pretty-looking area, but you tend to fight little wisps a lot, which annoys some people due to the glowy appearance and the bobbing of the wisps in combat.
For classes, I suggest picking a fairly self-sufficient class at the start, to maximize the amount of content you can see on your own. None of these, maybe barring the necromancer, is undesirable in groups.
Best picks are Cleric (melee plate healer, actually a contender for strongest class right now), Dread Knight (lots of utility and strong solo, plate tank) Ranger (the highest DPS and allrounder, gets runspeed buffs which helps a lot) Druid (you ll be surprised, its a cloth-wearing damage caster with INSANE amount of utility, and lots of sweet spell animations. Very soloable too) Necromancer or Shaman.
I do not recommend: Warrior, Monk, Rogue, Sorcerer, Paladin as their soloability and survivability or killspeed will lead to some frustration, and esp. Monk and Rogue arent very soloable at all.
Also, read above for complex classes I left out at first, as they arent a good idea for everyone to pick at start.
Now without spoiling too much, a few basic hints about the interesting features and juicy stuff:
Mounts: You can ride one at 7 if Varanthari, otherwise its 10. It doesnt matter which sphere you are level 10, crafting and diplomacy works too (note: Diplomacy is measured in skill, with 10 skillpoints being 1 level)
Either buy one at 12s 50 cp (which you ll have by the time if you arent spendy) or complete the first diplomacy storyline to the end for a free horse, saddlebags, a 12slot bag and some cash, along with a very nice story usually. This takes a few hours total, and leaves your diplomacy skill around 45.
Downtime: There is little to none for the recommended classes at that level. You can use food to further speed up regen.
Boats/Houses: No go at low levels, I am sorry. People are just starting to look into these areas of the game.
Crafting: one of the best ways of earning money, and a steady income through workorders. Very complex and involved. Also, do NOT be fooled by other games: Crafting in Vanguard requires just as much equipment and skills as adventuring. Your newbie gear will cause frustratingly hard progress on higher levels if you dont upgrade. This is the major mistake of most crafters.
Dungeons: Your earliest dungeon that requires a small group (2-4 people) is usually level 7-10. Its near your newbie zone, and can take many forms (a kung-fu clan stronghold, an old cave, a hollow tree, fortress in a different dimension etc. etc.) depending on what your race is.
Groups: You dont need full groups till quite a way in. Its up to you how many you want to group with. You can solo without trouble to level 20, and beyond that. There are plenty of soloable quests, spawns and areas out there.
No trail of breadcrumbs: Sometimes, you ll find yourself without quests, and no pointer where to go next. This is quite intended. Every continent has at least 2 general areas for each level range, thestra even 3. Its normal to get some exp through quests, some through killing. Dont play WoW-style by stacking quests and doing them 10-at-a-time, as you ll just ruin your own fun.
Bugs: Sometimes, you ll get bugs. Rarely anything gamebreaking, but often annoying nonetheless. The most common bugs involve stuck mobs, stuck in combat, and harvesting-related problems when aborting a harvest.
Broker: This is the AH: Be careful with your money. You receive a full set of decent armor through your first 9 levels, and a weapon or two. If you decide to buy a new weapon, I suggest not going for anything higher than green, at max blue, and get the highest you can use at your time. Often, you can get good weapons cheaply because they drop frequently at higher levels.
And last but not least: the point of levelling
Vanguard does something quite unusual: The best content is not at low level. The most fun is not the newbie zone. This leads to a steadily rising fun curve if you care to group up and hit the very well-designed group content, but it can be very disappointing if you expect to save the world on quest 1.
There is little reason to level race. Raid content starts in the early 30s if you want that, group content is there from level 8 on, great questlines, phat lewtz (legendary named weapons etc.) are available in the 20s, and are usually broken up in many steps ,none of which eat up 12h + of your time, and can be done weeknight to weeknight. I suggest not racing, as this will ruin your fun.
If you want a level-race, other games are much better at making this bearable.
Vanguard is not slow. But you can play it inefficiently, and many do so. Then, yes, it IS slow.
If you want to get exp, do NOT kill the hardest mob you can beat. Do NOT try to solo as much group content as you can. Yes, you will get better loot that way, but its not only inefficient, its slow, risky, and you dont get full exp for red mobs.
Best targets are 2- or 3- dot mobs +-2 levels of yours. Dont believe people who claim you should hit the Temple of Dailuk at 15 for mad exp on red cons.
This is the No.1 mistake made in this game: Picking the wrong targets. Vanguard lets you beat even very hard fights with a good group, but thats NOT the way to level. Thats the way to beat hard mobs
First of all, if you are one of the Vanguard haters,please dont feel obliged to spam your hatred. The game isnt for everyone, and has issues for sure. This thread is to help people who want to at least have a look at it to get it right, and see the game from an entertaining side, avoiding the worst issues and getting to the meat quickly.
Starting Out: Race and ClassThis is the second-biggest choice for your Vanguard life. Only the choice of continent will impact your initial gameplay more, and later on, class and race obviously make or break your enjoyment. If you are new to the MMO genre, or new to the design school of Vanguard (meaning you havent played WoW, DAOC, EQ1+2, FFXI or any of the other big fantasy MMORPGs) I would advise to stay away from the following classes, as they are rather special spin-offs of other classes, and dont teach the basic concepts very well, or are just plain complicated:
Blood Mage, Bard, Disciple, Psionicist.
For race, this affects your faction (meaning how many other races NPCs will try to kill you) and partially class choice. All the racials have their place, but 2 of notice are the Kojani Human one, which is currently extremely powerful for close fights in groups (as you can basically reload some classes completely on mana with it) and the dark elven one, which doesnt mesh well with pet classes as it calls a little fun pet wyvern, and is not acquired before level 8.
Orcs, Goblins, Dark Elves and partially Kurashasa have serious faction issues and will require some work to enter the major towns and ports.
Race also affects your newbie zone, and these are widely differring in terms of content, fun, and especially looks. I will list a few highlights to help decision:
Varanthari get a unique, race-specific questline that results in a free level 7 usable horse. Its the ONLY way to get a free horse outside diplomacy, and the crafter rentals.
Kojani Humans and Half Elves have a VERY well-done beginning, a real storyline to their quests, and one of the most stunning sceneries (a green bamboo forest, think "House of Flying Daggers" during their teens. THeir quests are fairly linear if you liked that from WoW, too)
Varanjar, Vulmane and Lesser Giants share a "rocky mountains" looking area, which is not only pleasant to the eye, but allows for easy movement between their newbie zones, giving you the pick of the 3.
Thestran Humans, Dwarves and Halflings have a very generic, and often laggy area that is the "same old" of other games. I dont recommend starting out there if you have played any other MMO fantasy game and want something new.
High Elves have a very pretty-looking area, but you tend to fight little wisps a lot, which annoys some people due to the glowy appearance and the bobbing of the wisps in combat.
For classes, I suggest picking a fairly self-sufficient class at the start, to maximize the amount of content you can see on your own. None of these, maybe barring the necromancer, is undesirable in groups.
Best picks are Cleric (melee plate healer, actually a contender for strongest class right now), Dread Knight (lots of utility and strong solo, plate tank) Ranger (the highest DPS and allrounder, gets runspeed buffs which helps a lot) Druid (you ll be surprised, its a cloth-wearing damage caster with INSANE amount of utility, and lots of sweet spell animations. Very soloable too) Necromancer or Shaman.
I do not recommend: Warrior, Monk, Rogue, Sorcerer, Paladin as their soloability and survivability or killspeed will lead to some frustration, and esp. Monk and Rogue arent very soloable at all.
Also, read above for complex classes I left out at first, as they arent a good idea for everyone to pick at start.
Now without spoiling too much, a few basic hints about the interesting features and juicy stuff:
Mounts: You can ride one at 7 if Varanthari, otherwise its 10. It doesnt matter which sphere you are level 10, crafting and diplomacy works too (note: Diplomacy is measured in skill, with 10 skillpoints being 1 level)
Either buy one at 12s 50 cp (which you ll have by the time if you arent spendy) or complete the first diplomacy storyline to the end for a free horse, saddlebags, a 12slot bag and some cash, along with a very nice story usually. This takes a few hours total, and leaves your diplomacy skill around 45.
Downtime: There is little to none for the recommended classes at that level. You can use food to further speed up regen.
Boats/Houses: No go at low levels, I am sorry. People are just starting to look into these areas of the game.
Crafting: one of the best ways of earning money, and a steady income through workorders. Very complex and involved. Also, do NOT be fooled by other games: Crafting in Vanguard requires just as much equipment and skills as adventuring. Your newbie gear will cause frustratingly hard progress on higher levels if you dont upgrade. This is the major mistake of most crafters.
Dungeons: Your earliest dungeon that requires a small group (2-4 people) is usually level 7-10. Its near your newbie zone, and can take many forms (a kung-fu clan stronghold, an old cave, a hollow tree, fortress in a different dimension etc. etc.) depending on what your race is.
Groups: You dont need full groups till quite a way in. Its up to you how many you want to group with. You can solo without trouble to level 20, and beyond that. There are plenty of soloable quests, spawns and areas out there.
No trail of breadcrumbs: Sometimes, you ll find yourself without quests, and no pointer where to go next. This is quite intended. Every continent has at least 2 general areas for each level range, thestra even 3. Its normal to get some exp through quests, some through killing. Dont play WoW-style by stacking quests and doing them 10-at-a-time, as you ll just ruin your own fun.
Bugs: Sometimes, you ll get bugs. Rarely anything gamebreaking, but often annoying nonetheless. The most common bugs involve stuck mobs, stuck in combat, and harvesting-related problems when aborting a harvest.
Broker: This is the AH: Be careful with your money. You receive a full set of decent armor through your first 9 levels, and a weapon or two. If you decide to buy a new weapon, I suggest not going for anything higher than green, at max blue, and get the highest you can use at your time. Often, you can get good weapons cheaply because they drop frequently at higher levels.
And last but not least: the point of levelling
Vanguard does something quite unusual: The best content is not at low level. The most fun is not the newbie zone. This leads to a steadily rising fun curve if you care to group up and hit the very well-designed group content, but it can be very disappointing if you expect to save the world on quest 1.
There is little reason to level race. Raid content starts in the early 30s if you want that, group content is there from level 8 on, great questlines, phat lewtz (legendary named weapons etc.) are available in the 20s, and are usually broken up in many steps ,none of which eat up 12h + of your time, and can be done weeknight to weeknight. I suggest not racing, as this will ruin your fun.
If you want a level-race, other games are much better at making this bearable.
Vanguard is not slow. But you can play it inefficiently, and many do so. Then, yes, it IS slow.
If you want to get exp, do NOT kill the hardest mob you can beat. Do NOT try to solo as much group content as you can. Yes, you will get better loot that way, but its not only inefficient, its slow, risky, and you dont get full exp for red mobs.
Best targets are 2- or 3- dot mobs +-2 levels of yours. Dont believe people who claim you should hit the Temple of Dailuk at 15 for mad exp on red cons.
This is the No.1 mistake made in this game: Picking the wrong targets. Vanguard lets you beat even very hard fights with a good group, but thats NOT the way to level. Thats the way to beat hard mobs
Comments
Here's a good one.
http://silkyvenom.com/forums
True what you said about Paladins being a difficult class to start with. However, stubbornly and painstakingly discovering the Paladin's strengths and weaknesses has made 23 levels as a Raki Paladin the most enjoyable, and frustrating at times, game experience that I have ever had.
Combat for me feels like an intense mini-game as a Paladin. Soloing, I'm switching between modes and deciding which attacks to use depending on the mobs status. In groups, I'm constantly juggling my endurance skills versus spells and rescues to hold aggro against those pesky Rangers and to keep adds off of the casters. If I look away for a second or miss one special attack, it could easily all be over. And I LOVE it!
If you're up for a challenge, go for one of those unloved classes I'd say. You may be on the back burner currently for development, but the victories you'll experience day in and day out will far out weigh the frustration and cans of Red Bull tossed at the wall. It has for me at least.
Now back on track... hope to see more guides from you, Khaunshar.
Im at the point where Im level 12 and Im trying to find more quests.
So what i did was try Diplomacy to get the free horse and 12 slot bag - in the process it lead me to some new towns where Im at and low and behold - saved myself 12s and found new quest arcs.
...in the end there was no Good and Evil only living and dead...
----------
"Anyone posting on this forum is not an average user, and there for any opinions about the game are going to be overly critical compared to an average users opinions." - Me
"No, your wrong.." - Random user #123
"Hello person posting on a site specifically for MMO's in a thread on a sub forum specifically for a particular game talking about meta features and making comparisons to other titles in the genre, and their meta features.
How are you?" -Me
Ive also seen people advertising ships for sale and such. We are getting to a point where some people are reaching the higher content. I still dont understand the point of ships though, other then prestige facto, and small traveling factor, there is no point to have a ship. Am I wrong?
I am the type of player where I like to do everything and anything from time to time.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Holodomor - pre-WW2 genocide.
The ships can also carry much more load than the flying mounts.
Sigil said that mount (in the air and over land) and sea fights will be coming sometime during the 6 months post launch.
It is funny when I see people get stuck when there is no "next quest" to go to. I am assuming other games did this? When you have no quest to do, start exploring to find another little city or town. Do you really need a quest saying "take this letter to Bjorn in the next town over"? Explore for yourself when the quests have dried up in your area. I have heard ppl complain around 15-18 there are no quests. They want you to take a big step and go into the world yourself. Explore a little, it is fun.
The original post was pretty good. One thing stood out about classes, and that is the necro not being group-friendly. That is un-true and would only be a bais from other games, they do great in grps as a dps class and have a nice int/com buff. They can also off-tank adds if needed. I don't play one, but have always enjoyed having one in group.
Sorcerors can solo pretty good and have some very nice dps. Druids are not better off as a solo class because thier pet doesn't hold aggro. Sorcerors have the best burst dps and can burn stuff down. They also get sleep fairly early which is a helpful crowd control ability.
The last bit was dead on, it really does get more and more fun as you level....and group in dugeons. Some of the questlines early on are for some great armor sets and weapons. Qalia has quests starting with a cloak in Coterie Infineum starting at 20. You also get a Legendary (red item) weapon at the end of the questline.
Thestra has a similar armor questline, starting a little higher and isn't really quest-based but faction based. The evil races (DE, Gob, Orc) will have to do a lot of work to raise faction for these. These are all in the Ward of the Celestial, mid 20's.