Survival Hybrid Build Veno

I'm going to start this off with a couple of disclaimers.

First. If you're looking for an easy, make a ton of money like nothing, blast anything that moves, and dies almost instantaneously build, stop. Find the back button on your browser immediately.

Second. I know this build isn't perfect, and will be promptly torn apart by several people. It's cool. I'm just trying to present something other than a cookie cutter. Tear at will. It'll help me improve it.

Alright. Now that we got that out of the way, what exactly am I talking about here? Simple. I'm talking about a veno that does not die easily. Period.

Here's the thing. You see your builds for Fox, you see your builds for Pures, you see a lot of builds. Everyone of them has their niche, right? Well, what if I told you that there is a way you could make a veno that has attributes of almost all those builds? Interested? Read on.

First off, realize one thing going in. This is not a build for simple people. You need strategy to pull this off, as well as a LOT of patience. For one MASSIVE reason. This build attempts to do EVERYTHING. As such, you spend a ton of money on skills, and gear.

Here's the stats. Tweakable to fit your own play style.

STR and DEX. Keep them at your level + 4. That's right. This build will have Light armor capability.

MAG and VIT. Here's the catch. In order to do this build, you're going to have to sacrifice a lot of Mag. I set my Vit at a solid 60, and put the rest into Mag. What does that come out in the end? This.

Vit: 60 Mag: (Level x 3) - 53
Str: (Level +4) Dex: (Level +4)

Keep in mind, that you can use less or more Vit. Vit in this build is designed for one thing. Taking more hits. Although putting it in Mag would give you more Mag Defense, and putting it in Str would give you more Phys Defense, straddle the fence, so you can take both.

Those are the stats. Now here comes the strategy. As you can see, your Magic is gimped. Big time. You'll be 18 levels behind on all weapon equips, unless you can find gear that increases Mag. That's the best you can hope for. Gear that increases Mag and Vit.

So, what will you be wearing? At this point, people that have read everything will be going: "Durrrrrrrrrrr. Light Armor."

Right, but so very WRONG. You will be wearing Light Armor, yes. BUT. You will also be wearing Robes. "WHAT?!" You might say. Remember at the top when I said this wasn't cheap? That's why. You are going to maintain not one, but at least TWO sets of gear. Notice I said "at least". That I will discuss later.

So, what skills are we looking at here? As you will be fighting in both forms, here's the best of both worlds for you, which I suggest you focus on.

For Normal Form:
Venomous Scarab. This is your spam spell. Over and over and over again.
Ironwood Scarab. For power. It hits hard, and reduces Phys Def, so your pet kills faster.
Blazing Scarab. Not as important as the other two, you can still use this to add a little damage to help your gimpy magic cause some pain.

Metabolic Boost. HP heal. 'Nuff said.
Nature's Grace. MP heal. Again, 'Nuff said.
Soul Transfusion. Switching MP and HP allows you to have double the capacity for both.
Bramble Guard. Because you reflect damage with it.
Summer Sprint. Because running faster is always better.

The others, you could buy, but I suggest you save your spirit/money for these:

For Fox Form:
Befuddling Mist. Lowers Accuracy. Helps you survive by making your foes miss.
Leech. Get this. Max it. It will save your life.
Fox Wallop. Because it's a cheap spell with decent power that you can use to hit your opponents.

Purge. Because every Fox needs it.
Amplify Damage. Because a mob taking more damage is always a good thing.

Also, Spark Eruption. You'll love the extra power.

And as always, Heal Pet/ Revive Pet. Because we're the PET class.

And. Prioritize these. Melee and Wood Mastery. Because that extra damage affects everything you do.

Now. You might be asking... Why THOSE? Because of how you're going to play. If you've played a veno in an aggro area, you understand the downfall of multiaggro. Heal your pet, and those mobs come after you. With this build, you can meet the incoming HEAD-ON. That's right. No running. As the mob comes towards you, switch to fox form. Start using Befuddling Mist, and Leech to keep your HP up, and Fox Wallop to hurt. The mob will drop. And you'll still be alive.

Now... What if that mob is a caster? That's where the set of Robes comes in. Keep an eye on the behavior of mobs. If it casts, put on the Robes. If you get aggro, Fire Away! You might have to use a few pots, or Metabolic boost, but as before, you'll still be alive.

That is the entire essence of this build. No matter what happens. You will SURVIVE.

Let me give you an example of something you might love this build for.

An FB run. Your barb's up in front pulling aggro, smashing mobs, etc. Well. WHOOPS! He didn't pull aggro right on a melee group. Cleric heals the barb. Pulls aggro. A mob is heading straight for the cleric. What do you do? Your pet's occupied on the one the barb is attacking.

Solution: Switch to fox, and meet it en route. You can become an impromptu tank the cleric can toss a few heals at, or even ignore, until something better pulls aggro off you, or the mobs die.

You are a multifunctional machine. You have many, many solutions for many, many problems. They may not be as flashy, or as beautiful looking as the usual solution, but you'll do the job of a lot of other people.

Which brings me to one final point. One last thing absolutely necessary to talk about. Remember that "At least"? There is a reason for that. Your gimpy magic will hurt you, and hurt you bad, in places like TT. Your pet heals will never keep up with bosses. So, what are you going to do? Simple. Find gear, no matter how low, that gives you a ton of magic. You're going to be extremely squishy, to the point of dying, if something happens to notice you. This is a very high risk method. Now... If you can get amazing Mag bonuses in your regular gear, cool. But if you can't, find as many pieces as you can so that you can equip a weapon as close to your level as you can get. It should suffice.

Here's a few side tips to anyone planning on using this. Get as many mats of any sort you can. Apothecary is your friend, and so is making your own awesome gear. And, please, please, don't try this without an extended inventory. It WILL end in tears.

Questions? Comments? I'd love to hear your input on this build.