Equipment Progression

cap1776 · November 2015

Hi folks,

I want to preface this by stating I am not an extremely experienced MMO person, but I am a long time D&D player. And I am trying to look at this game and play in a RP manner as much as possible.

I have been playing for a little while now, and am trying to understand a couple of things....

First, I understand that a bunch of things are on the auction house and from vendors, and sure, I can see buying some things from the Zen store (I'm VIP and initially got a founder package even though I couldn't play at the time) such as mounts or companions or special stuff.

But I don't like the idea of buying my gear. I have always enjoyed fighting monsters and finding my stuff in treasure chests or on them. THAT's a D&D staple. I fight and EARN them. That said, my main PC is almost level 60 and is still finding primarily green gear. I see a lot of folks at this level who are wearing mostly blue and purple. So far my only purple stuff is a ring and cloak from lockboxes. I also got a weapon enchantment from a lockbox but have yet to find any weapon with a slot for it. I have bought a couple of items from Seal vendors, but by the time I could afford them, most of the stuff I could get was below my current gear.

So I have to ask... Can I eventually earn gear that will be functional enough to play at the higher levels? Do I HAVE to buy my weapons in order to be able to be fairly effective? (I have seen that by the time my armorsmith and platesmiths can make armor, my green stuff is better than they can make...making me wonder what the reason for using them is, except for making stuff for lower level alts.)

DO purple weapons and armor drop from creatures that aren't guild raid required bosses, or do all purple items have to be bought or found in lockboxes?

I'm not knocking the AD system ...I am just trying to see if I can reserve my AD for supplemental stuff; like keeping my armor looking the way I like (which is expensive)

Second, and this is related...I am confused about the item level required thing. Some kind folks explained to me what item level means...but I don't quite get it... Why are players required to have specific gear to play some content, especially if they are not guild type players? (I play in with another player and we don't have the time to devote to trying to coordinate with a bunch of other people...we just play when we can grab some time) This game has random gear drops...there is no real way to know what we are going to get. The only way we could get specific gear is to buy it, and from my perspective, that seems to remove the "Oh look at this cool sword I found" element from the game.

I understand the level requirements...but why all the hubbub about the gear? If I want to fight a monster without the best stuff in the game, shouldn't I be able to try, even if I AM a bit underpowered? Wouldn't that make winning all the more satisfactory?

I appreciate any clarification and feedback you vets can give me. Thanks!

darkstarcrash · November 2015

Welcome to the game!

Have you checked out this thread, and the links in the first post?

Gear before 70 doesn't really matter in the long run. Up until level 60 use whatever drops that has decent stats for your class (hit points and armor penetration are top stats for most classes) -- maybe trade in bounty items for gear at the bounty master. In your 60s, the rewards from Elemental Evil quests should take you to 70.

At 70, buy a basic set of blue gear off the AH -- or run 3-man dungeons (I like Temple of Spiders) for blue gear and AD to buy stuff. You will get your mainhand from completing Spinward Rise, and your offhand and a decent cloak from Lord Neverember for reaching 70. Aim for rank 7 enchantments in your gear -- the price should be pretty good once Mod 8 drops -- but at least slot in the rank 5s that drop everywhere. If you have multiple classes at lvl 60, get some of the class sigils to use as artifacts.

Once your item level (which is just the total item score of each piece of gear, enchantment, and artifact) is above 1600, start running level 70 skirmishes and the Tier 1 dungeons (Lair of Lostmauth, Valindra's Tower, Malabog's Castle). You will get better gear drops -- it's blue, but pretty good, and is salvageable for AD -- as well as Seals of the Elements to buy specific gear pieces.
Once your gear ilvl is well above 2000 -- say 2500 -- start running T2s for epic (purple) gear and Seals of the Protector to buy specific gear pieces. If you're in a guild you have access to blue and purple gear if the Stronghold and Marketplace are high enough level.

With Mod 8 there will be additional ways to earn gear, which frankly I am not fully versed on -- but in any case, the good gear you will want to wear for a while is earned by running dungeons and skirmishes for drops and seals, not from buying off the AH.

And item level matters because if you are in a group, being weak affects the rest of the group. Some fights are basically dps races -- or at least there's a better chance for a mistake to end the boss attempt if the fight goes on too long -- so too many low-level players will ruin the fight for everyone, as would a tank without enough hitpoints to withstand boss hits.

Of course, more than just increasing total item level, you should get the right items and stats. Here is where the Class Forums can come in handy: check out the threads and don't be afraid to ask questions of expert players in your character's class.

cap1776 · November 2015

darkstarcrash said:
Welcome to the game!

Have you checked out this thread, and the links in the first post?

Gear before 70 doesn't really matter in the long run. Up until level 60 use whatever drops that has decent stats for your class (hit points and armor penetration are top stats for most classes) -- maybe trade in bounty items for gear at the bounty master. In your 60s, the rewards from Elemental Evil quests should take you to 70.

At 70, buy a basic set of blue gear off the AH -- or run 3-man dungeons (I like Temple of Spiders) for blue gear and AD to buy stuff. You will get your mainhand from completing Spinward Rise, and your offhand and a decent cloak from Lord Neverember for reaching 70. Aim for rank 7 enchantments in your gear -- the price should be pretty good once Mod 8 drops -- but at least slot in the rank 5s that drop everywhere. If you have multiple classes at lvl 60, get some of the class sigils to use as artifacts.

Once your item level (which is just the total item score of each piece of gear, enchantment, and artifact) is above 1600, start running level 70 skirmishes and the Tier 1 dungeons (Lair of Lostmauth, Valindra's Tower, Malabog's Castle). You will get better gear drops -- it's blue, but pretty good, and is salvageable for AD -- as well as Seals of the Elements to buy specific gear pieces.
Once your gear ilvl is well above 2000 -- say 2500 -- start running T2s for epic (purple) gear and Seals of the Protector to buy specific gear pieces. If you're in a guild you have access to blue and purple gear if the Stronghold and Marketplace are high enough level.

With Mod 8 there will be additional ways to earn gear, which frankly I am not fully versed on -- but in any case, the good gear you will want to wear for a while is earned by running dungeons and skirmishes for drops and seals, not from buying off the AH.

And item level matters because if you are in a group, being weak affects the rest of the group. Some fights are basically dps races -- or at least there's a better chance for a mistake to end the boss attempt if the fight goes on too long -- so too many low-level players will ruin the fight for everyone, as would a tank without enough hitpoints to withstand boss hits.

Of course, more than just increasing total item level, you should get the right items and stats. Here is where the Class Forums can come in handy: check out the threads and don't be afraid to ask questions of expert players in your character's class.

Thanks for your response Darkstarcrash. I can see what you mean, and I thank you for the explanations. I understand the normal process better now Unfortunately your response involves doing a lot of the very thing I want to avoid: buying my weapons and the enchantments needed for them. I really don't want to shoot for specific gear... doing so would quickly take a lot of fun out the game for me. I am not one of those gamers who spends a lot of time calculating each erg of power. I want to be surprised by new magic weapons and items. I want to look forward to drops. In short I want to play for fun. If it all boils down to following a set formula every time I want to make a character, then why bother?

I guess I will just have to play those adventures I can and if I earn gear that's good enough then I will get to play the reserved adventures. As far as my effects on others... well all I can do is my best. In the end it is just a game, and I should be able to play it for fun in my own way. I just wanted to know if it was possible.

Thanks folks.

wildfirede · November 2015

Just playing the leveling zones you will get an ilevel of around 1200-1500 - putting some Rank 7-8 Stones in the holes and getting some enchants (armor kits) for the gear and you are basically ready to roll 1600+ instances - from there Tier 1- Alliance - Tier 2 - Elven and upping the Rank 7-8 Stones + plugging in some lesser Armor/Weapon Enchants and you are set for 2-2.5k ilvl.

As of Mainhand/offhand weapon - there is almost no surprise here - you get them at level 70 and they evolve with you - each refinement point makes them better and better - and that's fine -
it's not like "Hey i killed a dragon with this mace but i will throw it away cause the other one gives +2 Stat"
it's - "Hey i killed a dragon and got some Refinement item - my mace will get better"

Cloaks/Belts/Artifacts too - they evolve - you take the one that best suits you - and you use it till endgame.

That's what i like in the game - the artifact items have a personal feeling after working weeks to upgrade them, and the Alliance/Elven/Dark armor pieces you wear provide you with new looks as you progress.

Equipment Progression

Comments