NF Paladin RAs?

Danamyr

Fledgling Freddie
Joined
Jan 28, 2004
Messages
1,359
Can someone kindly suggest an RA path up to RR4 for me, based upon those RAs available in NF? I am RR2L1 ATM, and have Purge so far, with 1 point remaining.

The RAs I'm considering are:

First Aid/IP: I know I can't get Faith Heal in NF, and it appears from the calculator that there are no pre-reqs for FA and IP. Given my RVR role, should I invest in FA/IP or not?

Purge: Purge is 5 points more expensive for the version comparable to what I have now. I like the idea of having it, because if I get CC'd and my Cleric gets attacked I can at least make an attempt to slam them off.

Det: This will be an either/or in conjunction with Purge until I get to a fairly high RR. The costs are too prohibitive. Would this be better suited to my role or not? If I do get Det how high should I take it? Lvl 4?

Aug Dex/MoB: I'll shortly have 50+11 Shield. I believe this should be sufficent given that I have yet to live long enough in any RVR encounter for my Shield to be made any use of. Normally I get stunned/mezzed, then debuffed then nuked stupid. This is a lot of points invested for no visible or realistically worthy return. Or am I wrong?

AoM: I like the idea of this, but again the results seem insignificant considering the cost. Given how fast casters can nuke these days, whether it takes them 2 or 3 nukes to kill me seems largely academic!

If you can think of any fundemental RAs I've missed, please let me know.

TIA :)
 

Daws

Fledgling Freddie
Joined
Dec 22, 2003
Messages
496
My advice is largely unreliable but:

Purge: I'd say go for it..if you can purge a stun and charge a caster every now and then instead of "getting nuked silly" then that would be good. - though I'd go for the first purge - try it out first at least, the 5 seconds might not be that long at all. On the other hand it may be damn annoying :p

Aug dex/MoB: You're right, you'll block plenty with none of that - just get MLs and BG asap that's all you need there imo.

FA/IP: Mostly don't really help the group, as if you're being "nuked silly" they'll just keep nuking until you're dead whether you have two HP bars or even three - good at higher RRs for PvE though :p

AoM: I'd say leave that ability well alone - I mean 2% (nerfed from 3%) really sucks for the points spent. And you're right - with the current level of nuking resist pierce just don't bother.

To help most groups the best you can do is get fully toaed and just get a good template, RAs at low rr don't make that much difference :\ Seems like i've told you to screw RAs and just get a good toa template :p But maybe that's good advice? :)
 

Sendraks

Fledgling Freddie
Joined
Feb 6, 2004
Messages
541
Anger of the Gods appears to be going down very well in the US Pally community.

An S/S pally with this ability at lvl 2, hitting with backslash, will make very short work of enemy support classes.
 

Tootz

Fledgling Freddie
Joined
Jan 8, 2004
Messages
246
At RR4, the following look pretty good to me, though naturally I haven't tried the new stuff yet :)

Wrath of Champions2 - 15pts (could swap for WoC1 and get VR2 instead)
Vehement Renewal1 - 5pts
Aug Dex2 - 4pts (pallies suffer on dex more than str/con)
Mastery of Blocking2 - 4pts
Mastery of Pain1 - 1pt (just to spend the last 2 rps, you could save them up for something)
Master of Parrying1 - 1pt (just to spend the last 2 rps, you could save them up for something)

Total = 30pts

Here's a rundown of what I would or wouldn't think about getting though...

What I wouldn't get:

Purge - I think 15pts for purge on a 15min timer, is a waste. The 5min reuse one is very nice, but at 30pts its a joke.

IP - The only really decent one, is IP3, and at 30pts, unless you're RR6 or above, you're other RAs are going to suffer badly. IP2 is a 50% heal, but at 15pts it is too expensive imo, and as a group pala there is no need for this. However, if you like to solo, then this is your only option of a self-healing spell while in combat thanks to the removal of Faith Heal.

Determination - Pallies at last get what they should have had all along, but now its a total waste of pts like so many of the updated RAs. 10pts at level 3 gets you a 10% reduction, but by the time that ever kicks in, you'll be long dead anyway.

What I would get:

Wrath of Champions - For 15pts, with WoC2, you'll get an insta PBAOE spell hitting for around 500 damage. It sits on a 10min reuse timer, and would be fantastic for either interupting casters/healers, or just giving a shock to that mid assist train bashing away on you.

Anger of the Gods - Looks like a great RA for tank heavy groups, but not much use in a caster one. 5pts buys you a stacking 10dps damage add, and 15pts buys you a 20dps one. Its on a 10min timer like WoC, and so should be up for most fights you end up in.

Vehement Renewal - Insta group heal, that heals everyone except you (basically faith heal without you getting it). While the 5pt option is a little low on the HP it heals, its on a 10min timer again, so should be up for most fights and a 400HPish heal on all group members isn't half bad for 5pts. This is probably the most group friendly RA though, and so might be worth taking to VR2 if thats how you play.

As for passives, all the usual suspects still apply, aug dex/con/str, mob2 or 3, etc.
 

Danamyr

Fledgling Freddie
Joined
Jan 28, 2004
Messages
1,359
Thanks for the replies :)

Ignore Pain: I take on board the comments about the cost of IP, and will consider this again later. Are there any pre-reqs for IP in NF, or can I just go and buy it? The RA Calculator is not specific.

Vehement Renewal: I am not at all impressed with the idea of Vehement Renewal. I'd get it if it healed me as well, but as it doesn't then I'm not interested.

Wrath of the Champion: I've read about WoC getting resisted a lot on VN Boards, so again, I'll give that a miss.

Purge: I think I'll get Purge for sure. I know 15 points is a lot to spend, but the 5 second delay version's simply not good enough, so Purge II it is.

Anger of the Gods: This looks superb, will definately buy it. Should help compensate for the traditional lack of damage a S/S Paladin can inflict.

Aug Str: Am I correct in thinking that Str is directly related to Weapon Skill? So a few levels of this may be worth having?

Aug Con/Toughness: I must confess to being confused here. Does Aug Con result in extra Hit Points because my Con is higher? Logic dictates it must, but I don't want to assume. Which of these two RAs will be better for the points?

The Empty Mind: This looks like a great RA - the additional resists may come in handy. Undecided though as obviously I have my own stacking resists.
 

Sendraks

Fledgling Freddie
Joined
Feb 6, 2004
Messages
541
Danamyr said:
Aug Str: Am I correct in thinking that Str is directly related to Weapon Skill? So a few levels of this may be worth having?

I believe so, and your damage as well.

Seen uite a few Pallys on the Drunken Friar pally forum recommend a couple of points in Aug Str for smacking people around, though since NF and the loss of Faith heal, there has been an increasing number of rather more offensively oriented Paladins. Aug Str 2+3 + AOG + 2-H = rather more hurt than you might expect from a Paladin. For S/S those RAs + Backslash, and I'm pretty sure you will hit like a mach truck. If you're defending someone, thats great, because you'll kill who ever is attacking them that much faster.
 

Danamyr

Fledgling Freddie
Joined
Jan 28, 2004
Messages
1,359
Sendraks said:
I believe so, and your damage as well.

Seen uite a few Pallys on the Drunken Friar pally forum recommend a couple of points in Aug Str for smacking people around, though since NF and the loss of Faith heal, there has been an increasing number of rather more offensively oriented Paladins. Aug Str 2+3 + AOG + 2-H = rather more hurt than you might expect from a Paladin. For S/S those RAs + Backslash, and I'm pretty sure you will hit like a mach truck. If you're defending someone, thats great, because you'll kill who ever is attacking them that much faster.

A single respec stone would allow me to change from 50 Shield to 50 2 Hand. Quite whether I'd do it or not is another matter entirely though :)
 

Tootz

Fledgling Freddie
Joined
Jan 8, 2004
Messages
246
To my knowledge no RAs in NF require any pre-reqs, aside the fact some need you to be level40. This goes for Master of Blocking, etc, which used to make you get Aug Dex2.

If the pbaoe chant thing does get resisted a lot, then it definitely wont be worth the pts, maybe just get the 5pt version purely to interupt then. Agree with Vehement Renewal being a poor shadow of the old Faith Heal, but I think the 5pts version is still worth having, as a 400hp heal on all group members except you, is still a nice return for 5 measly RPs.

Anger of the Gods does look nice, and I'll certainly be testing it out to see what sort of damage it gives. Its basically 2 swings for the price of 1 while that is up, so even if you only got for the 1st one at 5pts, it might be worth it.

Strength does indeed increase your weaponskill, but a pally has, and always will have, low WS anyway, and Aug Str2 only gives about 40pts more in WS anyway.

As for Aug Con, yes extra Con does increase your HP, as does Toughness. I think rougly speaking, for every 1pt in Con, you get about 4HP, which isn't much at all. So getting, Aug Con2, for example, you get an extra 48HP. Compare that to the 75HP you get for Toughness2 for the same amount of RPs.
 

Sendraks

Fledgling Freddie
Joined
Feb 6, 2004
Messages
541
Danamyr said:
A single respec stone would allow me to change from 50 Shield to 50 2 Hand. Quite whether I'd do it or not is another matter entirely though :)

Well thats the thing about Pallies, is that people underate them a lot. An S/S Pally is a great defensive tank, but performs well in the offensive role if you know what you're doing.

Likewise, 2-H is an awesome offensive tool on a Pally and is easily on of the best style lines in the game, but again works well in defense if you know what you're doing. Plus if you abilities like grapple and bodyguard it makes your life a lot easier.
 

Users who are viewing this thread

Top Bottom