Being smart or not

Kantrupa - Archosaur

So I got my BM to 61, I'm using Annihilator of Souls +3, not sure if I'm doing the right thing, I know that a BM using Fist/Claw ONLY is a fail BM but I'm not sure how to play, I just have 5m and that's stupid, can't afford any aps gear, I don't know how to play it know, I kinda need the help of the more experienced BMs on this one. Currently I use the 3STR/2Dex each level and I don't level my Skills in ages, mainly because I only use normal attacks .__________. hence the fact I don't level all of them.

Ok so, I'm counting that some of you can help me on this.

Maelael - Heavens Tear

Get some axes, and make sure your axe skills are maxed.

Really, you can use fists till 60 easily. Past 60 you want axe skills because there are now areas you can AOE solo or group efficiently for exp.

I'd really suggest asking for someone who has good experience from your faction, or maybe someone from your server could volunteer here to show you around Seaweed Thieves. It's a great training ground to learn to AOE, and where I take people to practice.

Kantrupa - Archosaur

Aoe? With my buid?

Maelael - Heavens Tear

Absolutely. I've taught many with the 3/2 build.

You can actually HP shard your gear and refine it without dorbs to 2 or 3, and have a good amount of HP. You also have the option to get barb buffs as well.

When I teach, the idea is for them to do it without charm or BP. This teaches them to quickly hit their aoes, make sure they are on top of their stun, remember to use their pots, and always have phys marrow up.

Then when they charm up, or use BP (and other buffs), its the easiest thing in the world.

You can start out learning with BP, but its practically cheating and you start getting lazy with your marrow, pots, and stuns. Plus Amps seem not as needed as well - as if theres no rush to put the mobs down before they kill you given each aoe practically heals 70%+ or more of your bar with BP.

The other thread with Hotkey setup that has been commented on today covers some of the AoE skill styles.

Really, I recommend an experienced BM player coming with and teaching you so they can critique you. This way they can be all "Great skill chain, but you forgot your marrow", "You should have re-stunned", "Perfect! Do it again so it starts becoming automatic" and etc.

Xainou - Sanctuary

Maelael - Heavens Tear wrote: »

Really, I recommend an experienced BM player coming with and teaching you so they can critique you. This way they can be all "Great skill chain, but you forgot your marrow", "You should have re-stunned", "Perfect! Do it again so it starts becoming automatic" and etc.

What do I have to do to bribe you into making an aoe guide?

Maelael - Heavens Tear

Xainou - Sanctuary wrote: »

What do I have to do to bribe you into making an aoe guide?

Uhm...I'm a decent teacher but by far not "The Best".

I can give it a go, though. There is also varying opinions on the matter, but not by much. It would also require some screen shots showing mob ranging. Trying to figure out how to best write about timing and choices too.

But really, reading it is one thing - practicing it and having someone critique you is another. I seriously think mentorship is probably the best way to go if you can find 15-60 minutes of someone's time.

Xainou - Sanctuary

Yea I agree that mentorship would be the best way. But I know personally, pretty much all my epic BM friends have quit before I started playing mine actively. So there's noone left to teach. b:surrender

Now that sounded like they all fled, being scared of me being a terrible bm... lol

Maelael - Heavens Tear

I'm working on something not too-wordy. I'm a wordy guy so...

But yea, I'd even try friends of a friend if you can for the time being.

Kantrupa - Archosaur

So at level 70 I should buy Calamity axes and TT70 gear and go with this path? I can't really afford aps gear lol and I think I "can't" use fists with the 1.48 aps

Sakubatou - Sanctuary

Kantrupa - Archosaur wrote: »

So at level 70 I should buy Calamity axes and TT70 gear and go with this path? I can't really afford aps gear lol and I think I "can't" use fists with the 1.48 aps

Axes and fists do the same amount of dmg until you start adding -int gear, so without it the only point is chi gain and a smaller but steadier stream of damage.

My advice is don't worry about leveling faster than you can afford the coin to level. Grind mobs, do quests, get your gear and skills for around your level before you move on. In the 70's you have the options of grinding or TT 1-x. In the 80's TT 1-x and 2-1/2-2.

A few skills to level are:
Golden Bell-Max
Roar of the Pride-Max
Daimond Sutra- Leave at level 1 (the bulk of the heal is the 20%)
Drake Bash- Max
Cyclone- Max
HF- Max
Fissure and Highland Cleave- level as you can
Cloud Spint and Will of Bodhisatva-level as you can
Magic Marrow-Around level 4-6 should do until you are comfortable with it
Phys marrow-level 1-3 should do. You can kill yourself by marrowing on an unfamiliar mob that decides to magic attack.

I'd keep fists. Auto attacking after cyclone is still your most effective 1v1 technique, and they're good to have in squads for building chi between HFs. Cyclone is also a strong aoe and allows you to finish with a speed buff. Not sure an aoe guide is needed, other than levels and locations. You're almost to the levels of grinding on Nightscream Island.

Edit:Level 70, get calamity axes. SS is sexy and they're some of the best dd axes until level 90.

Maelael - Heavens Tear

Unless you're doing a lot of PvP, the only thing I really "disagree" with Saku on is Drake Bash. You can leave that at level 1.

Saku is very right on the marrow warning. I think level 5 is fine - or you can go to max with Phys Marrow for grinding. Ideally, just don't use marrows until you learn the mobs. Utilizing Magic Marrow on the Magic hall in FF, and Phys Marrow on the Phys halls is essential for successful pulls there.

I think Saku just pretty much assumed you're leveling your axe and fist masteries too.

I'd also add leveling drake sweep. Sigh, I should prolly get back to work on that guide...

Calamaties vs Thunderbolt Axes are more of a preference. I never liked the Calamaties because of it ticking my charm. But with the addition of BP to the game, it's not as big of an issue and charms aren't as needed if you overpull. You can definitely use the Calamaties till 90 if you really wanted to as well.

TT70 gear is fine as well, or molds. Ideally just reach a comfortable HP level with whatever you can. 5kish is kinda a good goal for the 70s if you want to solo AOE, can go lower if you plan to always be BPed.


Saku, I'd agree an AOE guide may not be needed. But I've worked with near 20 BMs (alts and mains) since december-ish that didn't know how to pull, manage aggro distance, range, nor what skills to use and why when doing Solo-AOE. It's the fists, I tell ya.

Kantrupa - Archosaur

I have around 7m, it should cover for the Calamaty axes and TT70 if it's worth getting.

Maelael - Heavens Tear

Go for some cheap-ish TT70 or mold gear really if you're 75. You're only really going to be using it for 5-ish levels. TT80 is a big jump in stats - better investment if you can hold onto some coin.

Kantrupa - Archosaur

Ok so, I'm getting the axes and TT 70 sharded gear, just need to know what skills and a procedure on how to aoe. I really hope the 3str/2dex build with the stuns is enough lol

Maelael - Heavens Tear

Edited with Saku Feedback. Thank you Saku! Next edit may have formatting...

Disclaimer:

This guide was written as a how-to basics guide to AOE by request. These tips are applicable in group open field, solo open field, and inside instances. All of this comes from my experience pre-expansions & post expansions. As Morai skills are still in their testing for usefulness phase, more may be added later.

This guide cannot, and should not, replace in game practice & mentoring when possible. Good AOE requires practice to learn the timing, ranging, and not second guessing the choices you have available. A friendly mentor who can critque you while learning these strategies is invaluable.

AOE Guide

The following is a guide to solo AOEing past 60. Between levels 60-80, you can actually "powerlevel" yourself by grinding physical-only mobs with mainly Axe skills. Prior to 60 there is a base of gear, skills, and mob availability that makes solo AOE not viable. Knowledge and mastery of this aspect of playing your Blademaster not only helps you level to 80 easily, but provides a basis for core skills used in later instances like Frost.

I've broken this into three sections: Equipement & Stats, Skills, and Mobs.

As stated in the disclaimer - practice, practice, practice and find a mentor if you can. Any additions or thoughts - post in the thread! I hope this is useful to those asking.


Part 1: Equipment & Stats.

Gear and stats are essential to solo AOE. You will need a recommended amount of HP to survive being attacked while cycling through your skills, and damage output to eliminate your pull fast enough.

Nearly any build is fine. There are three main recommendations, depending on your post 80 or post 90 plans.

3 STR / 2 DEX a level:
This option is the lowest HP, most versatile, and high DD due to critical chance. You will be able to use current level fists and axes, but will be low on HP. This can be made up for with HP shards and Refines on your armor.

3 STR / 2 VIT a level with base DEX capped at 60:
This is the highest HP option. You will be able to use current level axes, but not fists - and you will want to restat later for APS build. You will not have to depend on your armor for HP, but will kill slower than a higher STR build.

5 STR a level with base DEX and VIT capped at 60 (Or at 53 for reset notes):
This is the highest damage option. You will be able to use current level axes, but not fists - and you will want to restat later for APS build. You will not be as dependent on your armor for HP, but some refines and shards will be needed. This is the fastest killing build as it does the most amount of damage. Your Physical defense will also benefit from the higher strength.

As you can see, all three builds have their strengths and weaknesses. All three work, it depends on if you want to restat later on, and if you prefer to soak more damage, or deal out more damage.

It is important to note, that the higher HP you have (VIT, Armor Shards & Refines), and the higher damage output you have (STR, Weapon Refines), the easier AOE is. An overgeared BM can easily solo bigger groups, or the next step of mobs sooner.

From level 60-70, you want a minimum of 3-4k HP, and 70-80 you want a minimum of 4-5k HP. It is reccomended to have 5k+ HP in your 80s for tanking boss mobs.

For survival, you want to seek out high Vit and HP gear. TT is fine, but typically 3* gear with good add ons can be better. TT gear resells well however, it is not hard to find cheap well refined and socketed gear in the auction house. Use physical defense ornaments while AOEing, and magic defense ornaments for other activites. You should not be fighting Magic based mobs while solo AOEing. A VIT or STR/VIT Tome is highly recommended. Please note that interval bracers are not needed to AOE, as you are utilizing skills for your damage, not auto attacks.

Legendary equipment (molds) have higher defense values. TT and Legenday refine the same, but both will refine better than 3* - It depends on the add ons for 3* for 3* gear to be more worthwhile. With TT Armor, you will need the equipment for souledges, so that is a consideration as well.

For Tomes, a dual stat tome gives more stat points in total. It is reccomended to get a Dex/Vit Tome due to later restatting, or a Str/Vit tome if you do not plan to restat.

For killing, you want the best Axe you can afford, refined as high as you can afford or luck out on, and socketed with the best you can afford. "Zerk" or "Sacrificial Strike" axes at low levels have been a debate among the BM crowd for ages. Some love them, some hate them.

I value Calamity Axes of Blood and Thunderbolt Axes equally - As Calamities offset the 5% loss with HP and Vit, and the Thunderbolt Axes provite a consistent increase in damage and strength. I had both back in the pre-BP days, I hated it when Calamities ticked my charm so I used my Thunderbolt Axes. Sakubatou swears by them. When they proc you are killing faster, and saving HP/Pots Charms, the issue is consistency and style. Try it out, see if you like it.


Part 2: Skills

You have Three Skills you will be using every round:
Drake Sweep - 8 Second Cooldown
Highland Cleave - 6 Second Cooldown
Fissure - 8 Second Cooldown

That is the typical recommended order to use them as well. Due to casting time and cooldown, this will be the most efficient and consistent skill order to utilize. There are atypical situations where you may use Highland Cleave first or Fissure first for range or spike damage and the slowdown affect, but in typical longer AOE battles, this order will keep cooldown timing misuse to a minimum.

The ideal situation every pull should be:

Keep Physical Marrow up at all times.

Stop a second away from the mobs if they run at normal speed.
Hit Roar of the Pride. (The mobs close in as it casts)
Optional: Use Tangling Mire, and/or Heaven's Flame for more damage if the skills are ready.
Drake Sweep
Highland Cleave
Fissure
[Option Skill]
Drake Sweep
Highland Cleave
Fissure
[Option SKill]

And do that until they die.

The [Option Skill] part becomes the complicated part and one of the reasons many BMs don't use a straight macro. You have a bit of time before Drake Sweep refreshes if you cast all three skills in perfect timing, so instead of standing there while the mobs beat on you - you have a few options:

Cyclone Heel - Hotkey switch to fists (swtich off axe), hit Cyclone Heel, and switch back to your axes.
Roar of the Pride - If the fight lasts long enough, this has refreshed by now.
Heaven's Flame - If you have two sparks ready adn this is not in cooldown.
Tangling Mire - Although this requires no cast time, it is considered a debuff or amp that can be "Something to click" instead of doing nothing while mobs beat on you.
Remarrow in longer fights.

Why not Glacial Spike or other skills? Because if you are spending Spirit to level these skills, you are ignoring others. But let's say you have enough Spirit because you were hyper-leveled in Frost runs. Cyclone Heel, Heaven's Flame, and Roar should cycle into availability during these intervals just fine, and those are your best options.

But what about Fan of Flames?
Lv70:
Cyclone Heel: 8 Meter AOE, Base Physical Damage, 80% of Weapon Damage, 1870 Damage.
Fan of Flames: Front Directional Fan, Base Physical Damage, 1478 Damage.

Cyclone heel works like the rest of your AOE skills, Fan of Flames you have to appropriately line up the mobs. In longer AOE battles, Fan of Flames is an excellent option if everything else is in cooldown, regardless of mob lineup.

As you are practicing AOE - stick to skipping that [Option Skill] for now. Practice the main axe skills until you are good at it, and comfortable. Once you start looking at drake sweep impatiently waiting for it to refresh, start mixing in that [Option Skill].

Buffs, Charms, Pots:

Always keep Bell up.
Cycle Magical Marrow and Physical Marrow to build chi inbetween pulls, but keep Physical Marrow up at all times while pulling or AOEing.
Bloodpaint is extremely useful. Ideally, you will not need a charm or pots with this buff.
Barb buffs are great, as you will have a larger HP pool to pull more mobs, and higher damage.
Cleric buffs should be self explanatory.
Reflect Buffs are great as they do extra damage as you are AOEing. This also affects aggro and the ability to pull further.

Cloud Sprint & Holy Path should be used to pull. It is not reccommended to use Will of The Bodistava, as that is chi that can be used to HF.

It is reccomended to have a MP Charm. This is one less pot you have to click as you will be running through your MP rather quick.
HP Charm is optional. It's good to have if you **** up a pull, but having BP has made this rather obsolete.

Regen Pots & Magic Damage pots are nice, but not required.
The best HP Pot you can afford is needed, even with BP at times.
Tree of Protection is very useful for heals.
Chi Pots are not necessary, but if you really want to HF every time it refreshes, this is the only way to really do it.

Part 3: Mobs

60-70: Seaweed Thieves, East of Sanctuary.
65-75: Nightscream Island, Misc Pirates north end of islands, and south end of islands. Some areas have casters mixed in.
70-80: Rockenwolves, south/southeast of Cave of Sadistic Glee.

Ideally, you want to stick to just physical mobs - or "non-ranged" mobs. Mobs that don't cast magic, or stay at a range. This way you can round them up, they follow and close in on you - and you AOE them.

At this point, there are just some things that cannot be described well, and should be experienced. You should take care to learn the following things.

A. Aggro Radius
This is the distance you need to be to a mob to get it's attention and follow you. You rarely have to be on top of a mob to aggro it, just near enough to it's aggro radius. Some mobs are different from others, but most are fairly standard.

Creep up on the mobs you plan to attack. See how close you can get without aggroing them. When you find that distance, that is how close you need to be to collect and round them up. This skill is key to pulling quickly and efficiently later on. You don't want to run further than you need, and the further you are from a mob, the less damage you are taking.

B. Aggro Distance
In open map, a mob will only follow you for so far. You will begin to pick this up as you start losing portions of the groups you pull. It is time based, and damaging the mobs will affect this timer. See pwpedia for more.

This can sometimes be partially mitigated by a quick aoe to the mobs to keep thier attention. Usually, it is most efficient to just collect well grouped mobs, aoe them down, and move to the next group. Otherwise you're spending about a round or two chasing down mobs instead of getting exp.

Inside of most instances, the mobs will follow you forever. There are some sections of FF that if you go past them, the mobs will reset. An example is mobs (ladies) inside of the big room with the heads. If you run up to the hallway that goes past BR, they will reset - both bosses and the 50 ladies in the room.

C. Group Aggro
You'll notice that most often, mobs are in groups of 5 both in open map and inside instances. In open map, typically the mobs will roam, and you have the ability to only get a couple.

Inside instances where most mobs are static, group aggro is easily seen. This is when you are only truly close enough to aggro one of the mobs, but the rest come with because they are close to that mob. Both in instances and open map you can utilize this technique to aggro more mobs (intented or not). Be familiar with about how close the mobs need to be to each other to group aggro. The grouped mob distances in FF are a good rule of thumb. The idea is to not run through the mobs, but near them so you don't start taking damage until you stop to AOE. Hall you can run along the walls.

D. Ranging

Ranging is knowing the radius, or distances of your AOEs, and the distance the mobs will stay at to attack you.

Roar, Highland Cleave, and Fissure is 10 meters
Drake Sweep & Cyclone is 8
Heaven's Flame is 12, but can be cast at a range of 8 meters away.

This means you can Roar, miss some mobs that are too far away (they will be attacking you shortly), and miss some mobs with Drake sweep while they are stunned. Appropriate placement of yourself, and waiting for the mobs to be close enough for Drake Sweep increases the efficiency of your AOE. This takes practice and a good eye for what is being damaged by those AOEs.

Always keep in mind that Heaven's Flame works differently. This skill is cast at a range, and the AOE damage pattern is based on the mob you targeted with it. The other AOE skills are based on your position, not the mob you have targeted.

This seems to be an often ignored, or unused skill. It noticeably comes into play in such situations such as RB. Placing yourself in the right area to properly hit all of the mobs with your stun, HF, or other AOE skills increases the efficiency of your play. AOEing those Archers a few times will keep them from shooting the cleric.

Often, you can utilize your HF to not only hit the close up physical attack mobs, but the archers and magic users at a range as well. Archer and caster mobs will typically be right outside the 10 meter radius. This can help keep aggro off the Cleric and other AOErs, along with increase the damage they do. When to stun in terms of radius comes into importance as well, because if you miss some - they go right for the cleric.

In some FF pulls this helps as well, ideally you wait till the mobs group right before stunning. This way you do not have to move and waste stun time, along with ensuring your party's AOEs hit as well.


Practicing:

When first learning it's best to have a mentor around. This gives you an experienced BM player coming with and teaching you so they can critique you. This way they can be all "Great skill chain, but you forgot your marrow", "You should have re-stunned", "Perfect! Do it again so it starts becoming automatic" and etc.

Absent of such, start with the Seaweed Thieves near Sancturary. If they die too fast for your tastes, go buy a level 1 axe, or move up to the next level of mobs. Pull 3 or so.

Go without any buffs besides your own. This forces you to better focus on your own skills, instead of relying on bloodpaint. Knowing the limitations of your own build allows you to further push your limits, and truly excel with a group or fully buffed.

Practice your skill tree. Keep going until it becomes second nature.
Practice Aggro Techniques. How many can you pull quickly? Keep increasing that amount.
Practice your ranging. What is the maximum distance or timing you should wait?

Kantrupa - Archosaur

Great guide, I'll follow this strictly, kudos.

Just one question: I don't like how Calamities burns 5% of you hp just for extra damage(it's not really extra damage, it's double, and if you crit berserk it's pretty good) mainly because I won't be able to afford charms after getting my gear.

Should I am for Thunderbolt then or Calamities won't be a pain in the a$$ while aoeing?

Maelael - Heavens Tear

Guide, not strict rules. GUIDE. Hehe. There are always exceptions to the rules. Ideally, be flexible. You may find something else you prefer to do - and that's okay as long as you're having fun. To me, efficiency and pushing limits is fun.

Yanno, with Bloodpaint, go for the Calamaties if they are the same price or cheaper. I just have really, really bad luck and I tended to always proc when I was right at the charm limit range back in the day. But we didn't have BP at that time.

Also, if you have a large enough HP pool, the mobs won't beat through it as fast, so you won't really be running any real risks with the zerk proc causing you problems.

It's not damage, you just lose the value of HP that is equal to 5% of your Maximum HP. So say you have 5000 HP - you would lose 250 hp. However, that zerk hit on multiple mobs will probably heal you completely with BP. So the risk is kinda no longer a factor.

Long run, you can use those Calamaties till 90 if you really want. Personally I liked the Ape Stun axes for my 80s, but Lion Kings are also swanky because you can use them for Calloused Lionhearts (GXs).

I realize I also forgot to mention the use of Diamond Sutra in that guide...sigh. Saku and a few others should be along eventually to point out what I missed.

Xainou - Sanctuary

Tbh I actually like grinding with my Lionheart hatchets. Yea, the hp loss can be a pain and you might not want to use them in tight spots but things die faster with zerk.

Only time I stick to some non-zerk axes is when I HF mobs and know whoever is supposed to have agro isn't doing that too well. Wouldn't be the first time I managed to pull all agro with crits ans zerks and go splat xD

Sakubatou - Sanctuary

Kantrupa - Archosaur wrote: »

Great guide, I'll follow this strictly, kudos.

Just one question: I don't like how Calamities burns 5% of you hp just for extra damage(it's not really extra damage, it's double, and if you crit berserk it's pretty good) mainly because I won't be able to afford charms after getting my gear.

Should I am for Thunderbolt then or Calamities won't be a pain in the a$$ while aoeing?

When aoeing the zerk effect can proc for double damage on each mob, but only dings you once per zerk attack. So if you pull 15 mobs and get one zerk you are dinged 5% hp but the mobs die one or two hits sooner meaning 5% hp loss saved you from 15 mobs hitting you an extra time which would be more than 5% hp.

And yah, I forgot Drake Sweep and Fan of Flames, even though they are some of your earlier aoes. Because you get them earlier (cheaper, and lower level requirements) I used to use them a bunch but now I rarely use either and only use Drake Sweep at the end of about my 3rd aoe set when everything else is in cd.

I'll proof those later tonight and can do a grammar check, but as of now I'm off to class. It already looks pretty polished as I glanced over it.

Fail_BM - Raging Tide

This thread makes me want to play my BM againb:chuckle

Maelael - Heavens Tear

No hurry on it Saku. Really I can kinda speel check a lot of it myself, I just kinda posted what I had so far inbetween **** at work.

And Fail, I think the BM who took my fav aoe spot tonight that was using fists to kill 5 mobs while I killed 20, probably misses playing a BM too. Although he may have been a bot cause he attacked stuff I was already aoeing. The sin on the other side of the hill was working about 5-10 to my 20.

So much for that spot. Too bad heaven and hell is always camped grrr.

Sakubatou - Sanctuary

Maelael - Heavens Tear wrote: »

Really I can kinda speel check a lot of it myself,

Irony defined, lol.

Maelael - Heavens Tear wrote: »

Sigh, although I PMed Saku this to proof, uhm...here's what I have so far roughly. Prolly needs a good spell & grammar check along with cutting out some **** to make it shorter.

Disclaimer:

This guide was written as a how-to basics guide to AOE by request. These tips are applicable in group open field, solo open field, and inside instances. All of this comes from my experience pre-expansions & FF change, along with post FF change and expansions. As Morai skills are still in their testing for usefulness phase, more may be added later.

This guide cannot, and should not, replace in game practice & mentoring when possible. Good AOE requires practice to learn the timing, ranging, and not second guessing the choices you have available. A friendly mentor who can critque you while learning these strategies is invaluable.so true

AOE Guide

The following is a guide to solo AOEing past 60. Between levels 60-80, you can actually "powerlevel" yourself by grinding physical-only mobs with mainly Axe skills. Prior to 60 there is a base of gear, skills, and mob availability that makes solo AOE not viable. Knowledge and mastery of this aspect of playing your Blademaster not only helps you level to 80 easily, but provides a basis for core skills used in later instances like Frost.

I've broken this into three sections: Equipement & Stats, Skills, and Mobs.

As stated in the disclaimer - practice, practice, practice and find a mentor if you can. Any additions or thoughts - post in the thread! I hope this is useful to those asking.


Part 1: Equipment & Stats.

Gear and stats are essential to solo AOE. You will need a recommended amount of HP to survive being attacked while cycling through your skills, and a good enough damage output to eliminate your pull fast enough.

Nearly any build is fine. There are three main recommendations,depending on your post 80 plans:
Post 90, really, since thats when we start adding -int and people start distinguishing themselves more by build
3 STR / 2 DEX a level:
This is the lowest HP but most versatile. Possibly highest DD, toooption. You will be able to use current level fists and axes, but will be low on HP. This can be made up for with HP shards and Refines on your armor.

3 STR / 2 VIT a level with DEX capped at 60:
This is the highest HP option. You will be able to use current level axes, but not fists - and you will want to restat later for APS build. You will not have to depend on your armor for HP, but will kill slower than a higher STR build.

5 STR a level with DEX and VIT capped at 60green? base?:
This is the highest damage option. You will be able to use current level axes, but not fists, and you will want to restat later for APS build. You will not be as dependent on your armor for HP, but some refines and shards will be needed. This is the fastest killing build as it does the most amount of damage.Alsoyou will have more physical defense from 5 strength. I recommend capping vit at 3+25 or 3+50 for one restat note.

As you can see, all three builds have their strengths and weaknesses. All three work, it depends on if you want to restat later on, and if you prefer to soak more damage, or deal out more damage.

It is important to note, that the higher HP you have (VIT, Armor Shards & Refines), and the higher damage output you have (STR, Weapon Refines), the easier AOE is. An overgeared BM can easily solo bigger groups, or the next step of mobs sooner.

From level 60-70, you want a minimum of 3-4k HP, and 70-80 you want a minimum of 4-5k HP.Good. I recommend 5k+ in the 80s because tanking pole becomes doable with a good cleric, but that has nothing to do with aoeing.

For survival, you want to seek out high Vit and HP gear. TT is fine, but typically 3* gear with good add ons can be better. TT gear resells well however, it is not hard to find cheap well refined and socketed gear in the auction house. Use physical defense ornaments, while aoeing, magic ornies during other activities.as you will not be fighting Magic based mobs. A VIT or STR/VIT Tome is highly recommended. Please note that interval bracers are not needed to AOE, as you are utilizing skills for your damage, not auto-attacks. Legendary equipment (molds) have higher defense values. TT and Legendary refine the same, but both refine better than 3*. You also already need TT equipment for souledges. Also, for tomes, a dual stat tome gives you more stat points total. And since BMs usually only ever remove dexterity and vitality endgame I recommend statting strength and get +dex/vit adds from your tome. Then if you have too much dex you change tomes and don't need to restat.

For killing, you want the best Axe you can afford, refined as high as you can afford or luck out on, and socketed with the best you can afford. "Zerk" or "Sacrificial Strike" axes at low levels have been a debate among the BM crowd for ages. Some love them, some hate them. I value Calamity Axes of Blood and Thunderbolt Axes equally - As Calamities offset the 5% loss with HP and Vit, and the Thunderbolt Axes provite a consistent increase in damage and strength. I had both back in the pre-BP days, I hated it when Calamaties ticked my charm so I used my Thunderbolt Axes. +11 vit and +185 hp=328hp or 7% of 5k. Also, the point of zerking is things die quicker so they don't damage you, since a single mob hit can be 5% hp, much more 15 mobs you pulled.

Part 2: Skills

You have Three Skills you will be using every round:
Drake Sweep 8 second cd
Highland Cleave 6 second cd
Fissure 8 second cd. Might mention the actual cd time since you talk about it later.

That is the typical recommended order to use them as well. I liked Fissure first, as it kept mobs from reaching me and attacking for another few secondsDue to casting time and cooldown, this will be the most efficient and consistent skill order to utilize. There are atypical situations where you may use Highland Cleave first or Fissure first for range or spike damage, but in typical longer AOE battles, this order will keep cooldown timing misuse to a minimum.

The ideal situation every pull should be:

Keep Physical Marrow up at all times.

Stop a second away from the mobs if they run at normal speed.
Hit Roar of the Pride. (The mobs close in as it casts)
Optional: Use Tangling Mire, and/or Heaven's Flame for more damage if the skills are ready.
Drake Sweep
Highland Cleave
Fissure
[Option Skill]
Drake Sweep
Highland Cleave
Fissure
[Option SKill]

And do that until they die.

The [Option Skill] part becomes the complicated part and one of the reasons many BMs don't use a straight macro. You have a bit of time before Drake Sweep refreshes if you cast all three skills in perfect timing, so instead of standing there while the mobs beat on you - you have a few options:

Cyclone Heel - Hotkey switch to fists (or switch off axe), hit Cyclone Heel, and switch back to your axes.
Roar of the Pride - If the fight lasts long enough, this has refreshed by now.
Heaven's Flame - If you have two sparks ready and this is not in cooldown.
Tangling Mire - Although this requires no cast time, it is considered a debuff or amp that can be "Something to click" instead of doing nothing while mobs beat on you.
And remarrow or Fan of Flames. FoF is nice because you get it so early and can have it a decent level before you even get Fissure. I also will sometimes attack once to put the skill in cd, then stun. Thats probably complicating it more than it needs to be though. Another complicated option to add is leap back as a form of kiting while in cd.

Why not Glacial Spike or other skills? Because if you are spending Spirit to level these skills, you are ignoring others. But let's say you have enough Spirit because you were hyper-leveled in Frost runsActually, I heard a friend say one reason the heads are such good exp is they glitch and give a fraction of spirit as experience. So you end up short on spirit and over leveled. Goons gave so much spirit everyone was making genies like crazy to burn it.. Cyclone Heel, Heaven's Flame, and Roar should cycle into availability during these intervals just fine, and those are your best options.

But what about Fan of Flames?
Lv70:
Cyclone Heel: 8 Meter AOE, Base Physical Damage, 80% of Weapon Damage, 1870 Damage.
Fan of Flames: Front Directional Fan, Base Physical Damage, 1478 Damage.

Cyclone heel works like the rest of your AOE skills, Fan of Flames you have to appropriately line up the mobs.

As you are practicing AOE - stick to skipping that [Optional Skill] for now. Practice the main axe skills until you are good at it, and comfortable. Once you start looking at drake sweep impatiently waiting for it to refresh, start mixing in that [Option Skill].

Buffs, Charms, Pots:

Always keep Bell up.
Cycle Magical Marrow and Physical Marrow to build chi inbetween pulls, but keep Physical Marrow up at all times while pulling or AOEing.
Bloodpaint is extremely useful. Ideally, you will not need a charm or pots with this buff.
Barb buffs are great, as you will have a larger HP pool to pull more mobs, and higher damage.
Cleric buffs should be self explanatory.
Reflect Buffs are great as they do extra damage as you are AOEing.and you can pull mobs farther since they're aggroed.

Cloud Sprint & Holy Path should be used to pull. It is not reccommended to use Will of The Bodistava, as that is chi that can be used to HF.

It is reccomended to have a MP Charm. This is one less pot you have to click as you will be running through your MP rather quick.
HP Charm is optional. It's good to have if you **** up a pull, but having BP has made this rather obsolete.

Regen Pots & Magic Damage pots are nice, but not required.
The best HP Pot you can afford is needed, even with BP at times.
Tree of Protection is very useful for heals.
Chi Pots are not necessary, but if you really want to HF every time it refreshes, this is the only way to really do it.

Part 3: Mobs

60-70: Seaweed Thieves, East of Sanctuary.
65-75: Nightscream Island, Misc Pirates north end of islands, and south end of islands. Some areas have casters mixed in.
70-80: Rockenwolves, south/southeast of Cave of Sadistic Glee.

Ideally, you want to stick to just physical mobs - or "non-ranged" mobs. Mobs that don't cast magic, or stay at a range. This way you can round them up, they follow and close in on you - and you AOE them.

At this point, there are just some things that cannot be described well, and should be experienced. You should take care to learn the following things.

A. Aggro Radius
This is the distance you need to be to a mob to get it's attention and follow you. You rarely have to be on top of a mob to aggro it, just near enough to it's aggro radius. Some mobs are different from others, but most are fairly standard.

Creep up on the mobs you plan to attack. See how close you can get without aggroing them. When you find that distance, that is how close you need to be to collect and round them up. This skill is key to pulling quickly and efficiently later on. You don't want to run further than you need, and the further you are from a mob, the less damage you are taking.

B. Aggro Distance
In open map, a mob will only follow you for so far. You will begin to pick this up as you start losing portions of the groups you pull. its actually time based. I know in an instance the mobs will follow you for 60 seconds, but I think its 15(?) seconds in open map. Attacking will reset this. I know pwpedia has an aggro dynamics link.

This can sometimes be partially mitigated by a quick aoe to the mobs to keep thier attention. Usually, it is most efficient to just collect well grouped mobs, aoe them down, and move to the next group. Otherwise you're spending about a round or two chasing down mobs instead of getting exp.

Inside of most instances, the mobs will follow you forever. There are some sections of FF that if you go past them, the mobs will reset. An example is mobs inside of BR. If you run up to the hallway that goes past BR I'm sorry, the bathroom?, they will reset - both bosses and the 50 ladies in the room.

C. Group Aggro
You'll notice that most often, mobs are in groups of 5 both in open map and inside instances. In open map, typically the mobs will roam, and you have the ability to only get a couple

Inside instances where most mobs are static, group aggro is easily seen. This is when you are only truly close enough to aggro one of the mobs, but the rest come with because they are close to that mob. Both in instances and open map you can utilize this technique to aggro more mobs (intented or not). Be familiar with about how close the mobs need to be to each(space)other to group aggro. The grouped mob distances in FF are a good rule of thumb. Don't run though mobs, run near them so you don't start taking damage until you stop. In halls, run down the edges.

D. Ranging

Ranging is knowing the radius, or distances of your AOEs, and the distance the mobs will stay at to attack you.

Roar, Highland Cleave, and Fissure is 10 meters
Drake Sweep & Cyclone is 8
Heaven's Flame is 12, but can be cast at a range of 8 meters away.

This means you can Roar, miss some mobs that are too far away (they will be attacking you shortly), and miss some mobs with Drake sweep while they are stunned. Appropriate placement of yourself, and waiting for the mobs to be close enough for Drake Sweep increases the efficiency of your AOE. This takes practice and a good eye for what is being damaged by those AOEs. HF is slightly different. Its 12m range is based on the target but every other aoe skill is based on your position.

This seems to be an often ignored, or unused skill. It noticeably comes into play in such situations such as RB. Placing yourself in the right area to properly hit all of the mobs with your stun, HF, or other AOE skills increases the efficiency of your play. AOEing those Archers a few times will keep them from shooting the cleric.

Often, you can utilize your HF to not only hit the close up physical attack mobs, but the archers and magic users at a range as well. Archer and caster mobs will typically be right outside the 10 meter radius. This can help keep aggro off the Cleric and other AOErs, along with increase the damage they do. When to stun in terms of radius comes into importance as well, because if you miss some - they go right for the cleric.

In some FF pulls this helps as well, ideally you wait till the mobs group right before stunning. This way you do not have to move and waste stun time, along with ensuring your party's AOEs hit as well.


Practicing:

When first learningdelete comma it's best to have a mentor around. This gives you an experienced BM player coming with and teaching you so they can critique you. This way they can be all "Great skill chain, but you forgot your marrow", "You should have re-stunned", "Perfect! Do it again so it starts becoming automatic" and etc.

Absent of such, start with the Seaweed Thieves near Sancturary. If they die too fast for your tastes, go buy a level 1 axe, or move up to the next level of mobs. Pull 3 or so.

Go without any buffs besides your own. This forces you to better focus on your own skills, instead of relying on bloodpaint. Knowing the limitations of your own build allows you to further push your limits, and truly excel with a group or fully buffed.
Bullets here? *points down*
Practice your skill tree. Keep going until it becomes second nature.
Practice Aggro Techniques. How many can you pull quickly? Keep increasing that amount.
Practice your ranging. What is the maximum distance or timing you should wait?

Excellent guide! When ready create your own thread with it and I'll vote for a sticky.

I got your pms but the spacing in them was really bad and made it difficult to read. The post in much better so I'll do my corrections in here and give my two cents. First, I'm going to use teal in areas I think might be omitable. I'm long winded myself (wrote a 26 page BM guide, lol) but less might be more and people may focus better if its shorter. For instance, no real need for a disclaimer. Trolls gonna troll, regardless.

These suggestions will bulk up what you already have, but may also not be needed. Up to you.
-Give best ways to level and ranges they apply. Sometimes, in the olden days of yore, BMs were gods because we could level 75+ in days by aoe grinding. Now things have changed.
-Mention AOE farming means DQ, DQ=Event gold, Event gol=better refines.
-Might mention Dmg reduction based on mob levels. Pwpedia has a link covering it.
-Hmm, no talk about frontal aoeing. You're gonna **** off the polearm users, lol. But I understand this is focused around axe or axe/fist.

Great guide.

Kantrupa - Archosaur

Speaking of the Facebook buffs, which one should I get?

Maelael - Heavens Tear

Kantrupa,

Either really works. The 15 defense levels from O'Malleys is not bad if you're on the lower HP curve, even saving 5 damage a hit adds up when 10-20 mobs are beating on you.

But if you're going with Bloodpaint, the Jones works great. Faster kills and BP is taking care of you just fine.

Saku,

Work is a little bit SpEd today, I'll totally work with your suggestions - a huge thank you. And yea the PM system sucks.

Ugh, its been years since I've frontal AOEd, I'll try to think of a way to explain it besides "Fronal AOE: How to confuse and annoy your party while causing yourself to need therapy" Good ol FB/BH51 days...

Maelael - Heavens Tear

So I'm reading a lot of your suggestions Saku, and as usual I'm with ya on them.

I think some of the suggestions may stay out to eliminate confusion. Some of the stuff I'd like to refine - like why you would use Fissure or Highland Cleave first.

60 Goals for Vit and Dex were the old school way. The ideal of 53 Vit is fine, and I think I'll change that. The idea behind the 60 dex was for the extra crit.

I'm not sure I wanna mention the magic ornies for other activities. Perhaps post 80, where they give enough bonus to be worth it along with being needed - ideally the bulk of your fighting 60-80 will be AOE grinding.

I'll add the remarrow option in there, but I think FoF is well addressed later - However I will mention that only use it over cyclone if the skill is leveled further and gives better damage.

Actually, we could address leaps and frontal aoes a bit in the FoF section.

Of note, FF = Frost, BR = Big Room (where the heads are). I believe its true on heads having lower Spirit Value, but most of the bosses have huge Spirit value. When friends need spirit I run Full FFs for them and make sure they hyper holeen, as Ive even noticed the spirit gain is incredible.

I know they have a section on aggro mechanics in there - but it's really complex to newer people, and I'm not confident it's 100% accurate for all zones and mobs. I believe I see a variance, but Ill check it out and incorporate some links to the site.

Like the reflect buff - ideally you DONT want to be hit while pulling so utilizing reflect to catch their aggro is a bad idea imho.

I also agree HF needs to be expanded upon. The fact it's not a PBAE changes a lot of dynamics with what you can do with it. That 6m range with 12m AOE is typically under-utilized.

And yea I made mention to the Mods the stickies in the forum need some attention, and that your guide should probably be stickied given we quote it a lot. 26 pages of good info imho - although I bet there's some revisions that are needed.