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Still cant decide what class for my main at release, how do YOU decide?
Ok, it's late, I'm bored, and I got Aion on the brain. So I figured I'd bounce this off the community.
I do this every MMO. I start a class then find a month later that another class is more interesting to me, I just didn't know enough about the pros/cons or mechanics at creation. So I'm hoping for some input to sway me so I don't get alt-itis a month after release. I'm usually a DPS/Tank in MMO's but my all time favorite class was a support class, Bards in EQ. I like to solo a lot but do plan on being in a guild. I like aspects of all the classes in this game and I guess I'm looking for someone to sway me in one direction over the other.
The highest I got in beta was 15 Gladiator. That class was fun as hell PvE but I'm leery because Tanks usually get owned by Casters in PvP. I dueled a SM in beta and could never close on him because of his ice spells. Normally I would play a Paladin for a warrior class and I'm wondering if Templar is like that. I thought they were but I didn't see any healing spells in my short time in beta. I only got a Temp to 12.
I played mage to 11 and went SM but that pet class didn't play near as smooth as other pet classes in other games plus they will be at a disadvantage in the air the way the pets are now. Fire pet was pretty stupid looking too. I really enjoyed the mage time though killing things in three spells and sorcerers look promising in this game.
I like rangers/assassins in most games but scout felt really weak at low levels. I'm wondering if I should suck it up in the low levels because from what I've read ranger supposedly gets very powerful and versatile at high levels. I imagine ranged combat is pretty useful while flying and I hear these guys can get away from a fight if things aren't going their way. I have no idea how the assassin plays. I loved my assassin in WOW but I have no idea if Aion assassins are anything like that other then the stealth.
Then there's the Clerics. I always liked the traditional D&D Cleric with plate mail mace and shield. They could really fight in the old pen & paper game. But I'm not crazy about being the designated healer. While that role is always in demand and somewhat rewarding I have always found that job in a group to be boring. But in my experience the healers of any MMO are always overpowered by the devs to attract people to this role. I'm wondering if I should just deal with the boring job in a group to be OP and in demand. From the dueling I saw in beta the priest classes are near unbeatable 1v1 against other classes. I expect them to be nerfed or others buffed.
So how do YOU decide what class to play as your main for the long run?
Can any more experienced Aion beta testers offer any insight to the classes that might not be obvious to someone who was only in the OB 5 days? (Friggin GG!)
Comments
Chanter would likely be the closest to a Paladin that there is.
Melee and heals.
DPS output is not the best; but, I hear that they can wear one done.
Chanter is also the closest thing Aion has to a Bard.
Some decent healing, but not as good as Cleric, and lots of buffs for the party.
"There is as yet insufficient data for a meaningful answer."
I agree:
Priest is White Mage
Chanter is Bard
Sorcerer is Black Mage
Gladiator is Warrior
Templar is...hmm...dunno
Assassin is thief
Ranger is ranger
Cleric is paladin, but not 100% sure about that.
"There is as yet insufficient data for a meaningful answer."
Honestly I don't choose a class because its the best/fotm/etc, I choose based off the concept/idea of the class.
I decided to be a glad just because thats the type of character I enjoy playing, swinging a big ass sword and being up in the front lines focused on killing.
If the class you picked feels weak, then make him strong. From what i've seen of the game, your character is what you make him to be, and with manastones/stigmas/etc you can make up for whatever weakness you feel your character has.
Like with my glad, during beta I felt he was just taking way to much dmg in a fight, so I jammed a bunch of parry stones up his ass, and he parried like fencer.
Disregard what people rate a class as, and just play something you know you like.
For me its because ive been playing a meele class in all the mmo ive play. So decided to have a change and roll a caster, therefore i'll be rolling a mage...
RIP Orc Choppa
Ok, it's late, I'm bored, and I got Aion on the brain. So I figured I'd bounce this off the community.
I do this every MMO. I start a class then find a month later that another class is more interesting to me, I just didn't know enough about the pros/cons or mechanics at creation. So I'm hoping for some input to sway me so I don't get alt-itis a month after release. I'm usually a DPS/Tank in MMO's but my all time favorite class was a support class, Bards in EQ. I like to solo a lot but do plan on being in a guild. I like aspects of all the classes in this game and I guess I'm looking for someone to sway me in one direction over the other.
For starters, let me just say (I'm sure I'll repeat myself) that Aion's class balance is based around team play, never 1v1. Choosing your class will very, very specifically determine your role.
The highest I got in beta was 15 Gladiator. That class was fun as hell PvE but I'm leery because Tanks usually get owned by Casters in PvP. I dueled a SM in beta and could never close on him because of his ice spells. Normally I would play a Paladin for a warrior class and I'm wondering if Templar is like that. I thought they were but I didn't see any healing spells in my short time in beta. I only got a Temp to 12.
As I said above, you're choosing a role. No one class will be an all-in-one. Period. That said, you're looking at two plate classes. One (gladiator) will be for DPS, trading off high DPS for survivability over, say, an assassin. A quick look through skills on the class should clarify what counters you'll have against casters, or any other concern you may have. The other (templar) will be for tanking, trading in most of its DPS for survivability over all others. Just expect that it will do little damage, but will be the last thing standing - that's what it's made for. Watching videos of either of these fighting should lend some clarity as to their roles in PVP. I specifically remember watching a video of two raids fighting each other in abyss. The templars would, unafraid, run to the front of the lines, and pull selected enemies out of the other's group to be killed - a sort of tractor beam effect. At the same time, they dealt hardly a scratch of damage, but didn't take much either.
I played mage to 11 and went SM but that pet class didn't play near as smooth as other pet classes in other games plus they will be at a disadvantage in the air the way the pets are now. Fire pet was pretty stupid looking too. I really enjoyed the mage time though killing things in three spells and sorcerers look promising in this game.
Well SM's are getting fixed. The pets will be flying by 1.6, so that's a temporary concern at best. Furthermore, I believe I've read that the pets look better as you level, so crappy to start, cool as hell by 50. Specifically with regards to SM, you're giving up basically half your damage to the pet (good or bad, depending on the situation) from what I understand. That said, in their current forms (non-flying pets) their role in PVP is generally as CC, and they will never be in large demand as they're supposedly the best solo class in the game, yet offer little to a group. On the flip side, sorcerers will be glass cannons. Little survivability, high damage. They trade even more survivability for range (unlike the assassin). Pretty basic stuff there.
I like rangers/assassins in most games but scout felt really weak at low levels. I'm wondering if I should suck it up in the low levels because from what I've read ranger supposedly gets very powerful and versatile at high levels. I imagine ranged combat is pretty useful while flying and I hear these guys can get away from a fight if things aren't going their way. I have no idea how the assassin plays. I loved my assassin in WOW but I have no idea if Aion assassins are anything like that other then the stealth.
Kinda started to get into it above, but yeah, assassins aren't ever going to be masters of survival. They are supposed to be the highest DPS in the game, with slightly better survivability than a mage, while having to deal with getting into melee range (and its dangers) to deal that damage. Having played a sin up to 12 in beta, I can tell you that with a few skills at 7, and especially the ones you get at 12, you'll start blowing through mobs much quicker. Doubt they'll be soloing elites any time soon, though. Rangers are going to be the lowest ranged damage you'll have, but hey there's stealth and kiting abilities. I honestly know little about them, except that fighting them as a level 24 they were little threat. No doubt they'll get better, but they're not (or damn sure shouldn't be, with their skills) gonna be top damage, ever.
Then there's the Clerics. I always liked the traditional D&D Cleric with plate mail mace and shield. They could really fight in the old pen & paper game. But I'm not crazy about being the designated healer. While that role is always in demand and somewhat rewarding I have always found that job in a group to be boring. But in my experience the healers of any MMO are always overpowered by the devs to attract people to this role. I'm wondering if I should just deal with the boring job in a group to be OP and in demand. From the dueling I saw in beta the priest classes are near unbeatable 1v1 against other classes. I expect them to be nerfed or others buffed.
Yup, then there's clerics. These guys are the designated healer. They are the best healer (of the two), and their job will always be healing, and never DPS. Nope, you (or anyone else) won't be the exception, loading up with +damage and blowing stuff away. They heal stuff, and they kick massive ass at it. Other people are there to make stuff die. That said, their survivability is extremely high. Their method of killing is simply by outlasting their opponents. OP? Hell no. You see them top charts because they're one of the last to die in PVP, that is if they survive the focus fire they're guaranteed in any PVP encounter. Yup, first target, always. Without their survivability, or backup heals, they'd be first down every time. As I said before, this game is not balanced for 1v1, and in duels they shouldn't go down before the other guy, generally speaking. As for soloing in PVE, they're slow. I had 4 blue items in beta on mine, including a level 20 blue staff. I manastone'd for damage (both magic and melee) and still would take 30+ seconds to solo mobs. Meanwhile, a sorcerer or ranger would come by, slaughter a mob in half the time, and move on. That's life for a healer in Aion. I'd go into chanters, but you don't seem interested.
So how do YOU decide what class to play as your main for the long run?
I picked the role that appealed the most to my nature. I've been DPS plenty in past MMOs. I've healed and tanked plenty. That said, I can't stand....can't..fking..stand grouping and playing around poor tanks, and far worse are bad healers. Fortunately, knowing that, I tried healer as my beta main, and I really enjoyed it (both in PVP and PVE) so my plans were set. Moments of weakness in my early 20's lead me to make the assassin mentioned above, and while it has its appeal, I've decided I can deal with cleric in the long run, and will.
Can any more experienced Aion beta testers offer any insight to the classes that might not be obvious to someone who was only in the OB 5 days? (Friggin GG!)
Done and done. BTW, most of this information is available, just have to look around. I'd suggest checking some higher level PVP vids if you can. Playstyles and tactics will definitely vary, but the roles are always the same no matter what you watch, and watching good players, you can very clearly pick these roles out. Not to hate on WoW, Aion doesn't offer classes that blast through everything as well as each other. There will be very definitive advantages and disadvantages to each class, but fear not. The best exp to be had in Aion is in groups, especially beyond a point (tbd...late 20's, early 30's to my best guess).
"The power of accurate observation is commonly called cynicism by those who have not got it."
George Bernard Shaw
What is a cynic? A man who knows the price of everything and the value of nothing.
Oscar Wilde
My first 2 characters are going to be a Cleric and a Spiritmaster, Cleric will be my main.
Scorp
Aion - Elyos Cleric
The Divine Touch
my main shall be a spirit master because theyre fixing the pets to fly after targets and even without that sm can bind wings (target wont take fall dmg but they cant get away from pet either) and the sm dp spell buffs the pet into a killing machine for 3 minutes at a time which is just awesome. my alt will be a parry machine gladiator because it was the 2nd most fun i had in the betas =D as far as people wondering about templars theyre the tanky tanks, they can be hard for an entire group to bring down when they have alot of heal pots and heal spell stigmas ect, while not overly high in dps theyre just boring as hell to try to kill hehe unless you have enough mages to burst them into a steaming pile of ash
I tend to choose class that has the highest versatility. That way i can switch the way i play, from lets say support to dps to tank, etc
Of course, i don't have to be the best at each aspect, as long as i get to switch my play mode every once in a while so i don't get bored. Sadly, classes like this tend to receive the biggest OP NERF PL0X
In this case, i chose a templar. i could always go full tank by slotting hp/def stones, or dps slotting crit/p.attack. also a little bit on healing, just a little bit
Hard to follow up that....lol
Personally I went with afew classes I havent played much in the past. I've yet to roll a rogue type class and my cleric is mostly because I enjoy healing (and the females look pretty damn good). All classes appeal to me so it was hard to choose but with creation like Aion I decided to narrow it down to afew toons quick. It really depends what roll what you want to fill and then create a look to match it. If you like to look good character creation alone might take hours lol
It really depends on what roll you want to fill and then work from there
EDIT: Typo (again)
"I play Tera for the gameplay"
To the OP:
They are actually working on getting the SMs pets flying btw, but based on your description of how you play I still dont' think you'd enjoy them.
The last FFXI comparison was probably the closest, however the Templar very much is like the paladin from FFXI. They don't really get many heals, but they are there. Out of gate Templars get a skill at lvl 16 (emphyric armor) which heals 25% of your health, and boosts your HP regen and defense by 50% for 3 minutes. On top of this, they get A LOT of defense buffs and shield bashes, in addition to their normal damage combos. A templar can absorb damage, stun, and boost their health repeatedly during a fight.
Gladiators - Samurai is a great comparison. They have a very minor amount of defense skills, but are mostly all about 2Hed damage combos and melee AoE.
Spirit Masters - Summoners, or Warlock (if you played WoW). They do have some mechanics NCsoft needs to iron out, but they have probably one of the highest sustainable DPS out of the casters. Their burst sucks though and their dots don't stack =/. This one will make a good alt though.
Sorceres - Black Mage. Caster - spikers. It's all about the CC, nuking, and DD bursting with this class. You will need to kite quite a lot, just like the ranger.
Ranger - Ranger. However, the ranger attacks MUCH faster in this game than the one in FFXI. I'd compare it more to the ranger from vanguard, or even WoW's (minus the pet). Highest ranged - single target burst in the game. High evasion, paper defense.
Assassin - Ninja / theif. Paper defense, but some good evasion buffs and stab abilities for high burst melee damage. Uses 'marks' to put combo points on targets in addition to status effects. Also uses poisons.
Cleric - White Mage / Priest. Great defense, main healer of the game. chain mail wearing healer / caster. Their damage isn't half bad either. Definitely a great class for those who enjoy healing other players (not just yourself). Very soloable, though not as quick as the other classes.
Chanter - Bard / Warrior Priest. Melee combat caster. Juggles melee combos, buffs, and heals. Not the greatest healer, but not terrible either. Basically a jack of all traits sort of class. Easy to lvl, easy to solo, but slows down at end game. You won't be owning every class out there on your own, but you'll stand a pretty good chance. In particular SMs will give you a pretty hard time in PvP, along with templars, provided they know how to play.
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That's pretty much the breakdown. You can make it more complex than that if u want, but that's the foundation of every class. Just going off what you've told us, I'd say you'd probably enjoy Chanter or Templar best. The ranger & sorc will be fun, but they do take some lvling to get really good in general pvp. However, later on they own just about everything. Assassins are very good, but again take a while to get that way (you won't really start seeing results in PvP as a sin until around lvl 30). However, end game, they are a force to be feared. Just watch out for large scale fights, you'll need to be careful during those.
From what you write I would think Sorc, Ranger or Chanter would be best for you. Ranger and Sorc do awesome DPS. But since it sounds like you do a lot of solo play too Chanter would also be good because it does decent damage while being able to heal well so you practically never die.