Struggling to find a reason to keep playing my cleric... but i really want to!

girzalmighty · December 2013

My cleric is 56, I've gone dps build, hybrid, and full heals... and i just don't feel viable in any of those roles, whether solo or in a group.... particularly in a group!

It constantly feels like, in each role, there is a better class i could play. And after recently rolling a two handed fighter i finally understand why.

Up until now, while running dungeons i've noticed that everyone, whether dps or tank, has a cleric companion with them. i'm constantly having to ask people to help get adds off of me, they're reluctant to... and the reason is, their companion is keeping them alive without me! i'm just burdening the group!

Now, this isn't my first mmo, nor is it my first time as a healer. in fact up until Neverwinter my time as a healer was almost exclusively in pvp, where the pressure is really on. Maybe this is a "wait til you hit 60 and then you'll shine like a beautiful diamond" thing, or maybe that's just me hoping. But i'm genuinely concerned and was wondering if anyone can give me feedback on this.

Is playing cleric something people do just because they enjoy the class? or are they truly NEEDED in the game?

lazuree · December 2013

You honestly need clerics at lvl 60
people ask me why I chose this class sometimes to be my main and that was because it was mentioned on some website it is easiest to get into a party as a DC, which is very true
At the lower lvls, just go dps, you will not hinder anybody... There were times I'd be top of damage dealt so they couldn't complain about my dps
At level 60, epic dungeons require a lot of healing esp dungeons like CN, MC, VT, epic Karr, spell, spider and the t1s too, so don't feel useless b/c it's kind of an amazing versatile class (not biased at all:p)
and now i'm working on a third dps/debuff one
Hope you find it fun/feel needed at level 60

shadow5930 · December 2013

Part of what might help your feel is what skills are you using? For DPS? Hybrid? Healer? It's night and day if you have the right tools to do the job.

Also, which path did you take, DO or AC?

spani4rd · December 2013

Without giving you a really long winded reply clerics are a very versitile class and you can often times change your build around or adapt to suit your temas needs. With that being said, you're never going to be a heal bot, so don't expect to stand around and just throw out heals, really your primary roll is providing people with damage reduction and keeping them topped up, or hit them with a heal when they take a big hit, allowing them to pop a potion and be back up towards full HP. Clerics are probably the most demanded class in the game for dungeon groups, because it's an underplayed class but you almost have to have one in any group. The cleric in this game is very passive though, not as in you don't have to do much (although sometimes this is the case) but because a lot of your spells and powers provide buffs/debuffs which happen pasively over time or are not reflected in your game numbers. Providing damage reduction to your team doesn't make you say heal more, debuffing mobs will make your allies do more dmg but that won't be reflected directly for you. People will tend to undervalue Clerics because they don't think you're doing enough, or they'll flame you because your not throwing out mad heals like crazy or because they keep dieing because they just stand there taking massive burst damage from red circles on the groud and just expect that your going to keep them healed up. This class can be very rewarding but it can also be very frustrating

morsitans · December 2013

Everyone has a cleric companion because she's the most useful companion by a country mile.

However, companion healbots are throwing out what amounts to a single, non-divine, healing word every 15 seconds or so. Zero mitigation, zero damage buffing, nothing else, just that one healing word. Also, littlemissHealBot stands in fire like crazy.

If you worry that you're not contributing, stop healing. See how people manage. Bring chains, daunting light and searing light (since none of these provide useful buffs to the team) and just spam damage. Watch as everyone dies because the astrals weren't there.

vorphied · December 2013

It's much more often the case that players' cleric companions, like other battle companions, are what's burdening the group due to their uncontrollable AI and decidedly limited combat effectiveness. Try running through a dungeon like Spellplague in a decent amount of time with a harem of cleric companions following the party and see how that goes. They seem programmed to lag behind, get stuck, or take off on a wild romp and ineffectually attack targets a mile out of your actual path, which is why they don't belong in organized group play.

It could also be that the content you've been running is so easy that any combination of players and classes will do (typical for below-60 dungeons and such), so your contributions don't seem as vital yet.

k17asu · December 2013

you are only healer class in game, that the reason xD

craeh1 · December 2013

as said, a cleric in NWO is not comparable with the "common healer" as you find in most MMOs.
It's more about mitigation, buffs, debuffs, shot story support, combined with little heals that are regeneration-like, you don't have any skill that blasts allies health in a second, may a lucky healing word crits at 6k+... still 1/4~1/3 of average players HP.
Also it's handling is very different to other games, cause you need to deal damage to be effective in any direction.

Til level~50 a cleric is not that different to the companion, after it changes hard, latest point are the first epic dungeons with lower GS parties.
The companions die like flies by two reasons: low defensive stats and they are kinda magnetic to void zones (red areas) - both equals a quick painless dead for them.

What role to choose as cleric is depending on the party and the situations.
On some parts it's just AShield and some ASeals and you can damage - on some other you need to focus on full healing/mitigations.

Also at the normal dungeons and also the lower epics, you meet mostly two kinds of players:
1. the "new guys" that are just/still learning the game, and also maybe don't know it's different to most other MMOs
2. the "rush toons", just pushing to 60 and equipment, that don't care that much about the party itself.

So there are some things you need to keep in mind a "new" cleric, and also while leveling new toons in general.
Allover: maybe try other classes, as said, NWOs cleric is different to other MMOs healers, if you used to play healers, it's not said you get lucky with clerics here.

Edit:
Got main Divine Oracle cleric, a second cleric rising on Anointed Champion path and a 3rd more tanky upcoming for some PvP fun.
Playing the main since I started with open beta, and I'm still very happy playing a cleric.

girzalmighty · December 2013

Hi guys,

Thanks for all of the feedback! i hit 60 earlier today, and ran a couple of 60 instances and you were all correct, without me there they never would have done it (or rather, without a cleric there). It's been a fun evening! thanks a lot!

ironfist82 · December 2013

I found it is amazing that people can fight without your astrals sheild... oh wait you were lv 56 and thats not epic dungeon!

tyrtallow · December 2013

I'm not really sure why anyone would complain about clerics pre-60.
Anyway, anytime before 60 as long as you drop Sunburst/A. Seal (switching to Forgemaster's and then finally Astral Shield) whenever possible and Hallowed Ground/Divine Armor against multiple elites/bosses then you're golden. If something goes wrong then generally its because of something your teammates did - the wizard/gf isn't doing his/her job, the strikers keep standing on the reds, the hunter acts like he's some sort ofsuperhero and refuses to come near enough for you to heal, that sort of thing.

If you're getting constant aggro then stop healing and slot control powers. If they complain, tell them that you can't heal because you keep getting aggro. That usually gets the point across. If it doesn't, your team was all but doomed to fail in the first place.
One of the reasons why the DC is under appreciated by inexperienced players is because total mitigated damage/overall party damage from buffs like Hallowed Ground doesn't show up in dungeon meters. If it did, they'd certainly appreciate DCs more. There's also the fact that some dungeons are easy enough such that not a lot of healing is required. Up until you reach the boss, anyway. If that's the case, then just swap your encounters for something more appropriate.
There's a reason why we get so many extra power points.

lazuree · December 2013

He was talking about how unnecessary he felt... as in he wished it were more of a challenge pre 60:p

tyrtallow · December 2013

I don't think that's what he meant, considering the "i'm just burdening the group" part.

lazuree · December 2013

girzalmighty wrote: »

Is playing cleric something people do just because they enjoy the class? or are they truly NEEDED in the game?

... sort of how GF's probably feel at lvl 60

broomy2 · December 2013

I'm playing a cleric as well (just hit 40) and this is a totally different experience to me from other MMO healers. People here still have to use potions and stay out of red or they die. I simply cant heal them up to full. Am I a bad or is it a question of the mechanics of this game?

lazuree · December 2013

It's the basic mechanic of the game... unless you are fully maxed out and your team knows what they are doing you will always need pots. That mechanic is what I like about this game, the fact that every red aoe will do large amounts of dmg to you and your team so it feels like it takes more skill to stay alive than other mmo's where I can facetank everything

rnewton8 · December 2013

all the end game dungeons require a DC, and T2's. pugs typically require a well geared DC who knows what he's doing. So yea they're 100% needed for PVE dungeons end game big time.We are main healers with good utility, excellent dmg mit, buff and debuff ability. Also, with DC you can play a hybrid support role with moderate DPS, but it's not common.

For end game PVP as a healer, it's highly debatable whether they're needed or not.

lyaise · December 2013

broomy2 wrote: »

I'm playing a cleric as well (just hit 40) and this is a totally different experience to me from other MMO healers. People here still have to use potions and stay out of red or they die. I simply cant heal them up to full. Am I a bad or is it a question of the mechanics of this game?

It is the mechanics of the game.

People - who should know better - consistently respond that you should use A.Shield as the crutch to help leveling. Ignoring the fact that this is a 50 point ability, meaning that 80% of your leveling has to be done without this. Even then you need 5 more levels to get it up to max.

So forget the A.Shield for most of the leveling - it isn't there. And around lvl 40 is where you really feel the effects of the DC game mechanics. Quite simply, this is one of the poorest healing classes ever brought to the mmo genre.

If your enjoyment is keeping players alive against the odds - well in this game the odds will win. You are not a true healer as you may have played in other games. You are a support class with a few skills, whilst others are universally ignored.

The class needs seriously adjusting to make it more enjoyable while leveling. This is where DC player numbers drop off as frustrations mount to a level where it loses enjoyment.

crescentdusk1 · December 2013

I don't find that entirely true :P I leveled just fine to 60 (first and only char DC) and have been playing for almost 2 weeks.

For leveling purposes I solo'd all the content aside from 5 player dungeons using Q(Daunting Light or Sun Burst), E(Healing Word) and R(Chains or Divine Glow). Chains is massively useful while leveling and healing word pretty much never leaves the bar...ever..

The BEST and most unfortunate advice however is that if you want to really level smoothly all the way up, you need about 10k Astral Diamonds so you can just buy an Epic(purple) quality primary weapon that scales with level. Hell I'm still using mine lol.

sosdetomatee · December 2013

I always felt like I am helping the group in PUGs and I can certainly heal the tank from almost zero to full in a matter of seconds while he's being damaged. The fact that they don't listen to what you say is common and they will not listen until you show what happens if they don't.

jenisyde · December 2013

Can't heal <font color="orange">HAMSTER</font>. A lot of it has to do with group composition. See my guide for some insight. PM me in game if you have specific questions.

Struggling to find a reason to keep playing my cleric... but i really want to!

Comments