Author: Poisoner
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Since there are already many guides on all classes 1-20 and a few on Assassins 20-39, I thought I would skip the basics and get right to the heart of it. I'll preface this by saying that, at this point, you should already have your first Light C set and at least an Ice Bow to start. If not, well, you can manage with Top D, like Manticore and a Gastraphetes or Light Crossbow.
Level 40: At last you have made it. No more annoyingly long Class Quests, no more being lost in the faceless masses of the 20-39 crowd all meandering around doing whatever it is that Lowbies do: You have become one of the Elite. Now you will stand out as someone who has challenged the Fates and has succeeded brilliantly. Someone said once that "The game really begins at 40". This is true.
The main advantage of becoming a Phantom Ranger, or PR, is your Masteries. At 40, you have access to the highest boost to your Bow mastery that you have ever, or will ever, get. +67 to your Bow PATK when you learn Bow mastery 18. Except Archers (Sliver Ranger, Hawkeye) no other class in the game gains such a high increase to damage from a Mastery. No more Dagger Masteries or Skills, except Sting, will be given so forget all about Daggers. Keep your D dagger or invest in a low C if you have the extra money. Most of us don't. It is only good for a secondary weapon when you are grouped as a DD (damage Dealer) or if you want to finish off an Enemy that is close to death without wasting an arrow.
Bow Skills: You will continue to get very nice bonuses for your bow as you progress passed 40. In addition, you now have access to
Double-Shot which makes Power Shot look not so impressive anymore. Beware though, DS as well as the other Bow Skills take a buttload of MP so they should be used with some restraint or in an emergency. You also have Stun, which you've had since 36. This skill, at first, seemed pretty useless since it hardly ever succeeded. Put a few levels into it and it should work more often. Again, this skill is used primary in an emergency or in PVP.
Now that you do a lot more damage with your (hopefully) Ice Bow and your Level 18 Bow masteries, you'll find you can manage some White/Most Green mobs without even using SS. Bows use a massive amount of SS (8 per shot for low C, 10 per shot for Highest C) compared to other weapons so avoid 'needing' them unless you are trying to level fast and don't care about money.
Light Armor Masteries: Not much to be said of these except that my strategy, although contrary to some strat-guides, has always been to learn Weapon and Armor Masteries first once available. The idea behind this is to fortify youself against damage and strengthening your attack power. Being a ranged-attacker, your other skills are not as important right off the bat. The only exception to this rule would be the availability of a new skill that would increase your damage or defense/evasion. Which brings me to my next section, Debuffs.
Hex and Power Break: Being a Dark Elf certainly has it's advantages. Most other races have their fair share of Debuffs, but the PR gets some particularly useful ones. Hex and Power Break.
Power Break is first earned at 32. At a glance, this skill seems at best an MP drain and nothing more. But, as we all should know by now, every little bit counts. Power Break lowers your enemy's PATK by 15% at level 1.
Hex: This skill lowers your enemy's PDEF by 15% at first level. Although 15% doesn't sound like much, at decent level and with decent gear, this skill can increase your damage by 50-100 points per hit! On an enemy that takes 10 hits to kill, this skill can add 500-1000 damage to the overall result.
Freezing Strike: Most Archers in Lineage 2 have a skill or a few skills that are meant to give them the edge against their foe. Silver Rangers get Entangle, Hawkeyes get the Hawk Eye skill, us Dark Elves get Freezing Strike. FS is another skill who's worth is not seen greatly until the higher levels. This skill is a Two-fold cast. Firstly, it damages your enemy with an Ice Attack (which is a good reason to keep some Spirit Shot on you for extra damage). Secondly, and most importantly, this skill slows your enemy's movement by 30%, making kiting even more effective and also cutting down your HP loss during a fight.
There are many other skills which you'll find will come in handy here and there. You continue to get Sting, so keep a dagger handy but don't invest too much into it, your bow is first priority. Now, let's talk about your self-Buffs and Bonuses.
Aside from your Attack and Defense Auras, you will recieve several other Buffs or improvements that others don't get.
Boost Breath: You are one of three classes in the game that have this Passive Skill. Being a child of the once-Goddess of Water, Shilen, you are blessed with the natural ability to hold your breath longer, making the Kiss of Eva spell unnecessary.
Accuracy: Some would argue that this skill is of benefit. In some respects it IS, but the price you pay is total loss of MP in a few short minutes making it too costly to worry about UNLESS you are in a PVP situation and need that extra accuracy to ensure the hit lands.
Vicious Stance: Like Accuracy, VS is a wonderful skill that unfortunately uses too much MP to be of great use. This skill increase the damage done when a Critical Hit lands. The main thing to remember when using either of these skills is that an Archer relies greatly on MP to even fire his/her weapon and resting for MP is far worse than resting for HP.
Shadow Sense: A new addition to C2 that only applies to Dark Elves. This skill is supposed to increase the DEs accuracy at night. Some say it also increases damage and/or chance to Critical but that is merely speculation. Nevertheless, night time is the best time for a DE.
Soul of Sagittarius: This skill is a blessing to a PR. It allows you to increase your MP but at the cost of your HP. This may sound like a downfall but the amount of HP lost when using this skill is nominal. SoS can be earned at 46 and increases your MP by 50 +/-.
Hunting: Some say that only Archers and Nukers can efficiently solo-hunt mobs higher than their level. This would appear to be true. Although the SS usage can get a little expensive, if you're wanting a quick jump to your XP, picking off a few Yellows doesn't hurt. Deaths Pass is a nice place for a PR at 40. Wyrms have an increased defense against arrows so watch for them. Road Scavengers and Guardian Basilisks are easy prey for the most part. Once you get a level or two into your 40's, Fettered Souls (x2 HP and XP) are decent as well. Another nice place to hunt is SkyShadow Valley, just south of Oren. Lots of Leto Lizardmen to hunt and nice wide open spaces that are great for kiting.
An important quality for anywhere you decide to hunt is space. Dungeons are not good for Archers as kiting becomes difficult in tightly packed areas and you run the risk of pulling other aggros onto you in the process. Remember to keep an ample supply of arrows on you at all time.
PVP: It is said that the PR is one of the best PVP chars: second only to the Hawkeye's damage and just shy of the Silver Rangers speed. With your arsenal of Debuffs and the high strength of the DE, you make an ideal sniper in a Castle Siege or catching your prey offguard. A good strategy is to hit them with Stun shot, Double Shot, and then pepper them with SS-loaded regular shots. Repeat until death. Sound simple? Well, maybe. Consider though, that Stun doesn't land and they come after you. If a warrior-class gets too close, it could spell Doom for you so keep your distance if possible. Thanks to LongShot 2, you have the advantage of remaining out of their range and still are able to hit them. Magic-users can certainly hurt but their lack of defense and HP leave you the chance to put them down before they do any real damage. The one fear of any Archer is a Knight-Class. They are gifted with Deflect Arrow skill AND they use a shield. If facing you, their shield (depending on their level) has an overwhelmingly high chance to block your shots. Either hit them from behind or try using other skills on them to lower their defense and /or HP over time.
Macros:
Buffs are the best thing to Macro, saving you time and only needing to press one button instead of 3 or 4. Remember, taking any action during a macro causes it to cancel so, just sti still when casting. I usually macro my Attack Aura, Defense Aura, Rapid Shot and Soul of Sagittarius. Other macros to consider are a combination of Hex, Power Break and Freezing Strike. Hex and PB both cast fairly quickly and can be used even in the heat of combat. A Freezing Strike and Hex macro make a nice opener to any battle. Feel free to play with different macros until your find something that works best for you.
This is not the Definitive Guide. It is based mostly off of my personal experiences and things I have read here and there. You will most certainly find other ways of doing things. This is meant to be a starting point for the Newly Initiated Phantom Ranger. Best of luck and good hunting to you.
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