Bash or fleshream or something else for herc?

Try Claw. If you can ever find it. Would be a nice addition to a Herc and should give you enough DPS on the big yellow guy to hold aggro better.

But really, Reflect is your primary aggro skill on herc.

If there was a 50 Veno/Herc and a 50 Veno/Nix both trying the same thing, the Nix's higher DPS with it self buffed will mean it would take aggro pretty much instantly from the Herc.

But the Nix would have trouble, say, tanking 12 mobs at once, or even holding aggro against them all with you healing it. Herc wouldn't have a problem, assuming they're all Melee, due to reflect.

So, if you put Claw on a herc it might help some. Really there's not much else you can do. Just don't replace Reflect with Claw. >_>

With new caster nirvana - I think I'd recommend an elemental bash - probably either toxic mist (so that it has the same boosts as you, to give it the best chance at holding aggro against you) or fireball (the opposite boosts to actually hurt the stuff that resist you)

But your herc cannot and will not hold aggro the way a proper tank can. And since even THEY cannot hold aggro against spazzin-sins, I suggest you give up any hope of doing so. (A real proper player will know how to turn down the aggro, of course. If you meet one, throw them a party.)

Claw is non-terrible suggestion - however a herc won't get the kind of benefit from it a faster pet would.

Sarrafeline - Sanctuary wrote: »

Try Claw. If you can ever find it. Would be a nice addition to a Herc and should give you enough DPS on the big yellow guy to hold aggro better.

But really, Reflect is your primary aggro skill on herc.

If there was a 50 Veno/Herc and a 50 Veno/Nix both trying the same thing, the Nix's higher DPS with it self buffed will mean it would take aggro pretty much instantly from the Herc.

But the Nix would have trouble, say, tanking 12 mobs at once, or even holding aggro against them all with you healing it. Herc wouldn't have a problem, assuming they're all Melee, due to reflect.

So, if you put Claw on a herc it might help some. Really there's not much else you can do. Just don't replace Reflect with Claw. >_>

Or dont put claw at all for goodness sake.. Comapring a Herc to a Nix doesnt make sense , really . whatever ......

@ OP : Bash is the best skill to let herc get aggro and its normal elemental damage will hit through most bosses (some are Immune to some elements).

@ Vitenka : Wouldnt another DD pet like Seamonster guardian or Wanderer do much more damage through an elemental bash ??? im not sure about this since i dont have a herc yet. Some help here would be wonderful.

Stick with Bash (either elemental or normal). Most Venomancers replace Pounce with Bash for a reason.

Flesh Ream doesn't work well enough due to its longer cooldown. Roar is a very nice skill but it basicaly resets aggro so chances are that if you use Roar a member of your squad with high damage output will just steal aggro (again). I see Roar more of an emergency skill, when things go wrong and you want the boss/mob to switch hate on your pet immidiately (eg. tank dies and targets the cleric).
Claw is not a terrible idea but I believe it benefits DD pets (pets with high physical attack) much more.
The reflect skill plays a major role in keeping aggro for the Hercules.

Thing is, players have better weapons (and gear) than two years ago and high refines are easier to get (mega orb sale going on as we speak) and so they are stonger, thus the Hercules is no longer the best dps nor tank in squads.

What do you plan on doing with your herc?

Do you plan to tank?
Go with Bash. Short cooldown and nice damage. Aggro is kept on the herc by Reflect damage + attack damage + skill usage. So if and when you lose aggro, reflect won't help you at all and it'll be harder to gain aggro back if you don't have an attack skill helping you out. Plus, while Reflect will help with AOE grinding, it's important to have an actual attack skill as well. Reflect alone won't always cut it.

Do you plan to be a back up tank?
Go with Roar. It works by clearing the aggro table and giving a small amount of aggro to the pet. This is useful if you run with people who have poor internet connections and/or are reckless. If the main tank goes down or a squishy steals aggro, you can let out a Roar to (hopefully) save the day and give the rest of the squad time to react, whether that is to res a dead tank or to stop DD'ing. That said, aggro management is a bit of a lost art in this game with more and more toons gaining the ability to tank things, so don't expect certain DD's to clue in enough to control their damage output. However, keep in mind that Roar is only useful in those few clutch situations.

Do you plan on PvP'ing?
While there are many better pets for PvP, I do know some people who use their Herc in this avenue as well. They like to keep Pounce, for the stun, or replace it with Flesh Ream, for the Bleed affect.

Like others have said, I'd go with Bash. For general use, the standard Bash should suffice. If you want to use your herc in caster-nirvana, an elemental bash is preferred.

Haven't checked but can't Bash be bought from the Pet lady in the south east corner of Arch. Or did you mean you want it cheaper?

Would be nice if PWI would allow a fifth pet slot on the legendary pets considering the work you have to put in to get one (real life or merchanting)

My last FC run the barb died on a big pull, mobs went after the cleric in BB and by the time i'd summoned my armoured bear and used roar to reset aggro to my pet the poor cleric was dead b:cry.

Managed to save the other 2 squad members by sacrificing my bear, then demonsprint/holypathing down the corridor and catching the mobs 1 at a time with my resummoned herc til the cleric ran back past me and rezzed the barb, if i had been able to use roar on my herc i could have saved the cleric from dying and losing experience

Considering one of a veno's jobs is to guard the cleric i would love to put roar on my herc but its not worth sacrificing Bash to do it for the few times where things get nasty.

A fifth pet slot would make veno's a much bigger asset to a squad in tight situations and help to level the playing field a bit for us against all the aps characters b:victory