Wolves?

_Mikosage_ - Dreamweaver
_Mikosage_ - Dreamweaver Posts: 40 Arc User
edited September 2010 in Venomancer
Okay so if you read all the guides on here they tell you to go with big clunky goliath pets like Icewalkers. But thus far I am not impressed.

I find the wolves you see around the game extremely appealing. They have high attack and speed. In contrast, i was once killed in a dungeon because the aggros simply outran the Crystalline I was using. They were wolves.

So far my original sharptooth wolfling is the strongest i have seen, but I'm always looking for a better wolf.

Does anyone else use the wolves/wolfkins? If so what do you recommend?
Post edited by _Mikosage_ - Dreamweaver on

Comments

  • Mhweewa - Dreamweaver
    Mhweewa - Dreamweaver Posts: 16 Arc User
    edited September 2010
    I'm using the White-eyed Wolf and like it a lot. But I have found that when it gets aggro on multiple mobs, it dyes very quickly. When my glacier walker gets aggro on multiple mobs, he survives better, thus giving me time to throw in a heal when I can.
  • _Mikosage_ - Dreamweaver
    _Mikosage_ - Dreamweaver Posts: 40 Arc User
    edited September 2010
    Mhweewa - Dreamweaver wrote: »
    I'm using the White-eyed Wolf and like it a lot. But I have found that when it gets aggro on multiple mobs, it dyes very quickly. When my glacier walker gets aggro on multiple mobs, he survives better, thus giving me time to throw in a heal when I can.

    That makes sense. I still have my crystalline in reserve in case it hits the fan but...alright here's a good example.


    My wolf was level 21. A monster that was level 27 aggroed on him. He has such high attack that all I really had to do was sit there and heal him and he dropped it.

    Low level benefit probably...but it was cool none the less. Also if there'd been more than one it could have been bad but lucky Miko was lucky.b:chuckle
  • GuinevirX - Heavens Tear
    GuinevirX - Heavens Tear Posts: 149 Arc User
    edited September 2010
    I use Guardian Wolf (lvl 45 at broken plane), it has decent attack , Flesh ream lvl 3 , Howl lvl 2 and Boost lvl 1 (the least useful anyway). Guardian Wolf has solid defences especially Magic defence , nice speed and HP , so i use it mostly to lure things (it's stats are even bettter than the kowlin just less attack and speed / and yes im not using range pets (dont like them).

    I have tried the 2 headed wolves , but they lacked the defences to let me grind at an efficient rate.

    lunar lupin and Neolithic wolf are in the same category as Guardian , However Guardian since lower lvl has a bit better stats (not much of a difference though)

    Hope i helped ^^
    Proud Male Venomancer <
    It's a game ...................... Face it b:laughb:laughb:laugh
  • MANray_ - Sanctuary
    MANray_ - Sanctuary Posts: 2,311 Arc User
    edited September 2010
    There are four types of wolves available in game, basically all wolves belonging to the same "breed" will have the same stats if caught at the same level (such as Frozen and Darkbreed wolfkins) although stats may vary according to growth charts if caught at different levels. All wolves are skilled with Flesh Ream and Howl which gives them a good aggro skill and a good debuff which adds to a caster's dps output enormously. Wolves also tend to have slightly better than average, well rounded (no real weak spots) stats, this makes them a good baseline on which to benchmark other pets.

    Type 1 wolves include the Sharptooth (a good alternative if you want a different color is the mad wolfling from the Human starter area, as it shares all stats with the Sharptooth) which, if i remember correctly, should be the highest damage available amongst all wolves. These are the most "natural" looking wolves although a few, such as the Rider Wolf, are larger sized.

    Type 2 is characterized by spikes coming out if their backs and are commonly found around level 20. They have generally more ressilient stats than type 1 and slightly diminished damage output, although they still make for good damage dealers. I would recommend the Darkbreed, which also has the advantage of avoiding the glitch that causes many of these models to look ugly once tamed.

    Type 3 usually have some sort of mane and have unusually bright colors. I haven't had any experience with them myself although some venos claim they have the best skill sets.

    Type 4 are the metallic wolves such as the Guardian, which is the better liked because of the slight stat advantage of being the lower level when tamed, although some venos choose the Lunar because of the pink stripes. These are probably amongst the best pet models available ingame. They have great tanking stats and are fast enough to be considered speed pullers (over 9m/s around level 90). Despite their relatively low damage output (they'll still beat a Shaodu Cub) they're probably the best suited for multirole/back up pets as they can handle two specialized roles (luring and mag tanking).

    Any of the 4 types of wolves should make for superb pets at any level range if adequately leveled/skilled, although none is considered top tier. I would certainly encourage any veno that likes them to keep one. I have seen high level wolves in action and they certainly hold their own.

    On a side note, there is a related family of sorts. While technically unique pets, the Tabby Plumdrop, Cuddly Pup and Kowlin all have wolf like characteristics and their stats seem to be arranged as if members of the same family. They range from the more ressilient Tabby (similar stats to a type 2 wolf) to the more fragile (but much better damage dealer) Kowlin. The pup has intermediate stats between these two. They could all be considered speed pullers as well, and are skilled with Ream/Howl. I myself use a Tabby and wouldn't trade it for any other pet.
  • Brael - Dreamweaver
    Brael - Dreamweaver Posts: 1,430 Arc User
    edited September 2010
    The four useful growth stats are hp, p-def, m-def, and attack. Here's a table of their stats from my spreadsheet
    HP	P-Def	M-Def	Attack
Wolf 1	3	2	3	5
Wolf 2	4	4	3	4
Wolf 3	3	3	3	4
Wolf 4	4	4	6	4

    As you can see, if you're interested in damage output wolf 1 is the way to go. The suggested wolf would be a Cruel/Mad/Sharptooth wolfling as they have a tame level of 2.

    When it comes to tanking, wolf 4 clearly wins with a Guardian Wolf being the best choice. However, you can't get a Guardian Wolf until level 45. Until then, you can use a wolf 2 for a tank with a Darkbreed/Forest Wolfkin being the best choice.

    When it comes to wolf 3's you may wish to consider a Snakevalley Bloodwolf for pvp. It comes with Flesh Ream 4 which would make it quite deadly if you're up against another player. However, even with that highly leveled skill at 27 (the level you can get it) it has 85.93% of the damage output of a Sharptooth Wolfling when comparing uncustomized pets, making it less than useful for pve.

    Edit:

    Since other posters brought them up here's the growth stats on some other pets 
    	HP	P-Def	M-Def	Attack
Tabby	3	3	4	4
Kowlin	4	2	4	6
TwoHead	3	3	5	4
Pup	4	3	4	5
  • Aeyris - Sanctuary
    Aeyris - Sanctuary Posts: 116 Arc User
    edited September 2010
    I used, and leveled, my Darkbreed Wolfkin up to level 60. It was a VERY good pet, for some tank and mostly pulling.
  • SeaStorm - Heavens Tear
    SeaStorm - Heavens Tear Posts: 315 Arc User
    edited September 2010
    If I remember correctly the lower the original level of the pet you tamed the better stats it has at higher lvls vs pets caught later. Long ago I compared with another veno my crystaline magmite and her Torrgin something that were same level mine had higher HP and resistances than hers. I assumed this is the same for most and another reason why Hercs/Nix start out at lvl 1, I believe.

    For tanking multiple mobs etc I've preferred the crystaline magmite (TB didn't exist when I started) as it can handle more mobs with it's higher HP and higher phy def. I usually used my wolf to tank more magic mobs as it had a higher magic def than the magmite.
    [SIGPIC][/SIGPIC]
  • Zymeriah - Lost City
    Zymeriah - Lost City Posts: 6 Arc User
    edited September 2010
    Personally i use a darkbreed wolfkin, mostly just because i've become attached to him lol. b:laugh I've found him to be an excellent pet. He doesn't take up half of my screen like a walker/magmite and he's a fine tanker. The only problem i find is that sometimes it's easy to steal aggro from 1 or 2 mobs when i'm aoe'ing, but i get around that by just making him frequently switch targets. Health wise, he seems to handle 2-3 mobs of the same level just fine. I also added roar onto his skills to help with any lost aggro and that has come in really handy at times. He only starts off with lvl 2 flesh ream and level 1 howl.

    Don't know whether this will help u at all, but at level 70 these are his stats:

    HP:2106
    Phys Res: 5426
    Accuracy: 1404
    Attack: 0.8/sec
    Phys Attack: 1336
    Magic def: 4973
    Evade: 935
    Speed: 7.7m/sec

    All in all, i've just become accustomed to having my wolf. He might not be the best pet, but mehhh i'm just not one to run with the crowd lol b:cute
    [SIGPIC][/SIGPIC]
  • VenoProwl - Raging Tide
    VenoProwl - Raging Tide Posts: 185 Arc User
    edited September 2010
    I like using the wolves while grinding- you don't really need to tank multiple mobs, and if you micro well you won't have to be mobbed too many times. The wolves also have a decent attack so you won't lose aggro so easily. Oh and the wolves actually look pretty cool.

    As for BHs, I always have my glacial out- while attacking the boss, maybe the wolves...but just maybe.

    Pros of Glacial in BH:

    any adds that come along can be quickly roared and tanked by your glacial, letting the initial pandemonium die down, and perhaps one DDer could come and help you finish off the adds.

    Pet sacrifice. I love this so much that I just bolded it. Quite an overlooked use of a pet- we're fighting the boss, and if the IHs from a cleric just isn't working and the barb is slowly dying, I just roar on my glacial. Aggro resets, most DDs are smart and will stop attacking, and while the boss does 2-3 hits on my glacial b4 killing it, the IHs catch up, barb takes back aggro and we're good to go again.
    [SIGPIC][/SIGPIC]

    AriAdiemus - Archosaur:
    "Clerics heal health, they still can't heal stupid."

    So true. b:surrender

    8x Veno, 6x Cleric
  • GuinevirX - Heavens Tear
    GuinevirX - Heavens Tear Posts: 149 Arc User
    edited September 2010
    VenoProwl - Raging Tide wrote: »
    I like using the wolves while grinding- you don't really need to tank multiple mobs, and if you micro well you won't have to be mobbed too many times. The wolves also have a decent attack so you won't lose aggro so easily. Oh and the wolves actually look pretty cool.

    As for BHs, I always have my glacial out- while attacking the boss, maybe the wolves...but just maybe.

    Pros of Glacial in BH:

    any adds that come along can be quickly roared and tanked by your glacial, letting the initial pandemonium die down, and perhaps one DDer could come and help you finish off the adds.

    Pet sacrifice. I love this so much that I just bolded it. Quite an overlooked use of a pet- we're fighting the boss, and if the IHs from a cleric just isn't working and the barb is slowly dying, I just roar on my glacial. Aggro resets, most DDs are smart and will stop attacking, and while the boss does 2-3 hits on my glacial b4 killing it, the IHs catch up, barb takes back aggro and we're good to go again.

    if only that was generally true it would be a great way to prevent party wipes b:surrender
    Proud Male Venomancer <
    It's a game ...................... Face it b:laughb:laughb:laugh
  • Desdi - Sanctuary
    Desdi - Sanctuary Posts: 8,680 Arc User
    edited September 2010
    VenoProwl - Raging Tide wrote: »
    Pros of Glacial in BH:

    any adds that come along can be quickly roared and tanked by your glacial, letting the initial pandemonium die down, and perhaps one DDer could come and help you finish off the adds.

    Pet sacrifice. I love this so much that I just bolded it. Quite an overlooked use of a pet- we're fighting the boss, and if the IHs from a cleric just isn't working and the barb is slowly dying, I just roar on my glacial. Aggro resets, most DDs are smart and will stop attacking, and while the boss does 2-3 hits on my glacial b4 killing it, the IHs catch up, barb takes back aggro and we're good to go again.

    Indeed DDs not always very smart and keep beating the **** out of the boss unless the tank is dead. Then you see them running aroundb:laugh No offence to DDs, I know there are some good ones out there as well.

    The technique you mention there about sacrificing your pet is really interesting. I've never thought of it myself except in the situations where the Barbarian is already dead so I can save the Cleric. I'm definitely going to use your technique next time my squad's tank will be in danger. Thank you for sharing it with us!
    [SIGPIC]http://i.imgur.com/MtwcqjL.png[/SIGPIC]
    ★ Venomancer videos - tinyurl.com/k6ppkw4 ★ Desdi - Demon ♪ Wyvelin - Sage ★
  • GuinevirX - Heavens Tear
    GuinevirX - Heavens Tear Posts: 149 Arc User
    edited September 2010
    Imagine that i'm a DD myself (archer main) and i wrote that lol , i have did that on BH 29 , my Walker (dumped him now anyway), lasted 9-10 seconds and barb was rezzed , and everything went right , we didnt have DDs lol , so i guess since ur lvl 89 ur squads would be more experienced b:pleased
    Proud Male Venomancer <
    It's a game ...................... Face it b:laughb:laughb:laugh
  • MANray_ - Sanctuary
    MANray_ - Sanctuary Posts: 2,311 Arc User
    edited September 2010
    For such scenario the skill i would recommend using is Threaten. It can give the tank a chance to recover or allow a DD to hold out long enough that he can be assisted. I'm really not sure why this skill is not usually suggested as an alternative to dealing with random aggro in high level bosses.

    Roar is tricky to use and as it has been pointed out it can easily backfire. I would recommend using it only as last resort, usually only when the boss has aggroed a DD in which case the pet or a recovering tank are likely to be the only ones attacking. On this scenario the pet should be left out to hold for as long as it can (through a skill such as Tough) although the veno should be prepared to lure the boss away from the squad, using Holy Path to gain some distance and survival skills to keep going on for as long as needed for the squad to recover. Do be careful not to get killed amidst a group of mobs if it comes to that.
  • GuinevirX - Heavens Tear
    GuinevirX - Heavens Tear Posts: 149 Arc User
    edited September 2010
    MANray_ - Sanctuary wrote: »
    For such scenario the skill i would recommend using is Threaten. It can give the tank a chance to recover or allow a DD to hold out long enough that he can be assisted. I'm really not sure why this skill is not usually suggested as an alternative to dealing with random aggro in high level bosses.

    Roar is tricky to use and as it has been pointed out it can easily backfire. I would recommend using it only as last resort, usually only when the boss has aggroed a DD in which case the pet or a recovering tank are likely to be the only ones attacking. On this scenario the pet should be left out to hold for as long as it can (through a skill such as Tough) although the veno should be prepared to lure the boss away from the squad, using Holy Path to gain some distance and survival skills to keep going on for as long as needed for the squad to recover. Do be careful not to get killed amidst a group of mobs if it comes to that.

    Indeed threaten is a really useful skill out there . maybe it's becuase it affects 1 mob at a time so most venos dont think it's worth getting for open world fighting , too bad for them , i may put it on my wanderer (im really messed up about his 3rd skill)
    Proud Male Venomancer <
    It's a game ...................... Face it b:laughb:laughb:laugh
  • King_Solomon - Heavens Tear
    King_Solomon - Heavens Tear Posts: 1,341 Arc User
    edited September 2010
    Brael - Dreamweaver wrote: »
    The four useful growth stats are hp, p-def, m-def, and attack. Here's a table of their stats from my spreadsheet
    HP	P-Def	M-Def	Attack
Wolf 1	3	2	3	5
Wolf 2	4	4	3	4
Wolf 3	3	3	3	4
Wolf 4	4	4	6	4

    As you can see, if you're interested in damage output wolf 1 is the way to go. The suggested wolf would be a Cruel/Mad/Sharptooth wolfling as they have a tame level of 2.

    When it comes to tanking, wolf 4 clearly wins with a Guardian Wolf being the best choice. However, you can't get a Guardian Wolf until level 45. Until then, you can use a wolf 2 for a tank with a Darkbreed/Forest Wolfkin being the best choice.

    When it comes to wolf 3's you may wish to consider a Snakevalley Bloodwolf for pvp. It comes with Flesh Ream 4 which would make it quite deadly if you're up against another player. However, even with that highly leveled skill at 27 (the level you can get it) it has 85.93% of the damage output of a Sharptooth Wolfling when comparing uncustomized pets, making it less than useful for pve.

    Edit:

    Since other posters brought them up here's the growth stats on some other pets 
    	HP	P-Def	M-Def	Attack
Tabby	3	3	4	4
Kowlin	4	2	4	6
TwoHead	3	3	5	4
Pup	4	3	4	5
    SeaStorm - Heavens Tear wrote: »
    If I remember correctly the lower the original level of the pet you tamed the better stats it has at higher lvls vs pets caught later. Long ago I compared with another veno my crystaline magmite and her Torrgin something that were same level mine had higher HP and resistances than hers. I assumed this is the same for most and another reason why Hercs/Nix start out at lvl 1, I believe.

    For tanking multiple mobs etc I've preferred the crystaline magmite (TB didn't exist when I started) as it can handle more mobs with it's higher HP and higher phy def. I usually used my wolf to tank more magic mobs as it had a higher magic def than the magmite.

    That's it, SeaStorm. The charts Brael provided are important but the tame level seems to make a lot of difference. For instance, a Kowlin has attack growth 6 and a sharptooth (tamed at lvl2) has attack growth 5 but in practise the Kowlin hits lower.

    the stats of a sharptooth at lvl 90 are:

    HP: 2524
    phys attack: 2311 (vs. 2218 on Kowlin, 2145 on pup)
    phys resistance: 5961
    magic resistance: 6557
    accuracy: 1989
    evasion: 1223
    attack rate: 0.8/s
    movement speed: 7.6m/s

    It's worth mentioning the Wolf 1 group has great accuracy compared to other DD pets though pet skills never miss. Evasion is particularly relevant when the owner uses Befuddling Mist as the first attack.
    [SIGPIC][/SIGPIC]

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  • VenoProwl - Raging Tide
    VenoProwl - Raging Tide Posts: 185 Arc User
    edited September 2010
    Desdi - Sanctuary wrote: »
    Indeed DDs not always very smart and keep beating the **** out of the boss unless the tank is dead. Then you see them running aroundb:laugh No offence to DDs, I know there are some good ones out there as well.

    The technique you mention there about sacrificing your pet is really interesting. I've never thought of it myself except in the situations where the Barbarian is already dead so I can save the Cleric. I'm definitely going to use your technique next time my squad's tank will be in danger. Thank you for sharing it with us!

    b:thanks first did it in the TT where you had to leave the 10k hp clones alone and attack the 50k hp boss a few times. Barbo was abit low levelled, so had to constantly do this to make it through :)
    MANray_ - Sanctuary wrote: »
    For such scenario the skill i would recommend using is Threaten. It can give the tank a chance to recover or allow a DD to hold out long enough that he can be assisted. I'm really not sure why this skill is not usually suggested as an alternative to dealing with random aggro in high level bosses.

    Roar is tricky to use and as it has been pointed out it can easily backfire. I would recommend using it only as last resort, usually only when the boss has aggroed a DD in which case the pet or a recovering tank are likely to be the only ones attacking.

    Ooh I should try it...maybe I'll jst get it as my 4th Glacial skill...was going to save up for reflect...but meh I'm too poor.
    [SIGPIC][/SIGPIC]

    AriAdiemus - Archosaur:
    "Clerics heal health, they still can't heal stupid."

    So true. b:surrender

    8x Veno, 6x Cleric
  • Desdi - Sanctuary
    Desdi - Sanctuary Posts: 8,680 Arc User
    edited September 2010
    Ah threaten is a wonderful skill. I have it on the Armored Bear and I love it. I usually use the bear in BH69 to help the tank but if I see the squad is not very good (eg. already died once at boss or something) I use the cub because it has roar. I wish we could have 5 pet skills...that would solve a lot of problems >.> I just don't want to delete Pounce since it's such a rare skill and comes in very handy when I solo.
    I'm going to put threaten on the Kowlin in the future (i have "invest in skills" and "invest in pet skills" periods xD ).
    [SIGPIC]http://i.imgur.com/MtwcqjL.png[/SIGPIC]
    ★ Venomancer videos - tinyurl.com/k6ppkw4 ★ Desdi - Demon ♪ Wyvelin - Sage ★
  • kurokaji
    kurokaji Posts: 0 Arc User
    edited September 2010
    Mhweewa - Dreamweaver wrote: »
    I'm using the White-eyed Wolf and like it a lot. But I have found that when it gets aggro on multiple mobs, it dyes very quickly. When my glacier walker gets aggro on multiple mobs, he survives better, thus giving me time to throw in a heal when I can.



    I use a Dark BreedWolfkin, I think he is lvl 67 now, I am a lvl 72 heavy venomancer, I heal him after every 2-3 mobs because he can hold his own. I actually will send him after one mob, and I will fight a different one more often than not.

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