Solo cleric needs to learn how to play with others...

to0nz · July 2012

I must admit, I hate most of the time playing in groups...

People are quick to judge and assume, they build their cookie cutter characters and assume that everyone else knows how they expect them to be...

Its annoying and up until this point, avoidable.

Sadly, I am a cleric... A pure magic cleric that has been soloing till now...

At level 75 I have 18 quests where I can not even get past the minions at the start of the area let alone fathom the concept of even getting the boss down 1% before being 2 hit killed.

So fine... I'll find a group...

Oh wait Im a cleric... I'm.... support....

So I read and what do I read... rants...

Rants over how clerics have no idea what they are doing or how they are doing it wrong....

Ok... So can someone give a clear concise explanation of what a cleric should do in a group?

I get some of the concepts....

1.) Pre-Buff everyone, 1 hr group EXCEPT for health/mana UNLESS no one has a food buff already in use.

2.) The tank is the glue, concentrate on him. Heal others when possible
- Question:
- Which way do you heal?
- I have read Chromatic and I have read Ironheart so... which one?

3.) Rez when it is safe... Purify when its safe.... and keep concentrating on tank.

Other than this... I have NO IDEA how to group. I have never Chromatic or BB'd or whatever its called....

In short, I could really use some SOLID pointers here. I still havent done Spiritual Cultivation 59.

Also in short, I realize the value of the group and would hate being refused groups due to lack of knowledge of them so hoping you can help.

Thanks.

laloner · July 2012

People vent about clerics in forums because you don't dare say anything to them in squad chat. People have to suck up to them because they are so rare. I once did a TT run with a cleric who let everyone die and said she did it on purpose because she didn't like they way we were clearing. Everyone just went along with it. Don't worry about being criticized to your face it won't happen.

Just tell people if you haven't done an instance before, no one will complain.

to0nz · July 2012

Wow... that kind of rots really...

But yes, I will feel better if I mention that I am supernoob and just hope people dont rage too badly then... LOL

If I get really luckly, they'll give me pointers! LOL

shotwhointhewhat · July 2012

Not really true about people not trashing clerics. Nobody is safe from being the hate target of some nerd who just got killed. Especially if they believe it to be your fault. However, they will generally not just kick a cleric right away. There is more of a chance you will get insulted or at least told in a smart *** way to heal better if you mess up. The main reason being your level and most people would assume you have learned squad play by now.

Best thing to do is just say up front that you are new to grouping. Explain to them that you will need them to help tell you what to do and not to get upset if you fail the first attempt. Most people seem to take their virtual deaths less serious if you prepare them for the possibility and they think of it more as a learning run.

I would recommend joining a guild, but they all kind of suck. I been in some of the best guilds on my server and I got more help from making random friends than any guild has ever given me.

Nowitsawn - Heavens Tear · July 2012

The best way to learn it is by experience and just figure out what works for you.

The fact that you actually care about being a good healer already puts you ahead of at least half of the cleric population nowadays.

Xx_BeLLa_xX - Harshlands · July 2012

It's a MMO, ofc there's stuff you cannot solo and as cleric unless you plan to press ''O'' and by R9 at higher lvl you will always need to squad for instance (cause anyway some instance need 6 people to open), so read all your skills, listen people if they suggest you something or just say it's the first time you do the instance and ask them to tell you if you need to BB, if they say it's not needed than use the other heal skills.

-IH (ironheart) is your main heal, it stack which mean that if you heal someone and switch to someone else the first person still get heal for few seconds.

-Wellspring surge is the heal to use when some need a heal fast for a big amount of hp.

-purify is really important, that remove the negatif debuff on people, so if you see on the tank or someone else where is the buff something else than a buff purify that will remove it, with time you will know which debuff do what.

-CHB (chromatic healing balm) is a aoe healing skill, use it when really need it.

-BB is a blue ball that heal everyone in squad and also reduce the damage taken, some lazy cleric will BB all the time, but just do it when needed. (as i said just tell people it's your first time in the cave and ask if BB is needed at the boss they will tell you.)

Becareful cause sometime someone can take aggro on the boss, so you need to be fast to switch and heal the new ''tank''.

For cleric in squad you will be always take only for heal/keep squad alive, if you are someone who want to DD i suggest you to maybe stop play cleric and reroll a other class that is a real DD.

If you need more advice let us know.

VenusArmani - Dreamweaver · July 2012

Forums won't let me quote her. So I'll just say read this sticky http://pwi-forum.perfectworld.com/showthread.php?p=15494491#post15494491 from the part "squadplay in instances" onwards.

Yin - Momaganon · July 2012

Xx_BeLLa_xX - Harshlands wrote: »

For cleric in squad you will be always take only for heal/keep squad alive, if you are someone who want to DD i suggest you to maybe stop play cleric and reroll a other class that is a real DD.

I disagree with that. Sure there are classes that does more damage but clerics has some unique features and if you like it you can do what ever you want. Sure there will be people who will rage if you don't dont play "normal" wayt and some other class could do that better.
There are many reasons one choose cleric it is completly up to him/her how he/she enjoy it most.

I like DDing myself, I like playing mages. No I dont choose psy or wizard even psys can do much more damage and wizards alot more dmg per hit. Cleric gives me more options to enjoy the game, in my opinion.

On topic, as said above IH is your main heal, later you prefer BB because it can be hard to say who is going to be tank and bosses will have more aoes. And it is ok to ask advice in squad.

Xx_BeLLa_xX - Harshlands · July 2012

Yin - Momaganon wrote: »

I disagree with that. Sure there are classes that does more damage but clerics has some unique features and if you like it you can do what ever you want. Sure there will be people who will rage if you don't dont play "normal" wayt and some other class could do that better.
There are many reasons one choose cleric it is completly up to him/her how he/she enjoy it most.

I like DDing myself, I like playing mages. No I dont choose psy or wizard even psys can do much more damage and wizards alot more dmg per hit. Cleric gives me more options to enjoy the game, in my opinion.

On topic, as said above IH is your main heal, later you prefer BB because it can be hard to say who is going to be tank and bosses will have more aoes. And it is ok to ask advice in squad.

Well maybe on your server people take cleric in squad as DD, but from mine clerics are except to heal/keep squad alive, of course they don't all heal and some DD beside heal letting people die, so you are probably one of theses fail metal wizz that let people die for DD, up to you and if someone told you a other class will do better than you you probably are a really bad cleric.

There's not 150 reasons to choose a cleric, someone choosing a cleric should keep in mind that a cleric main job everywhere gonna be heal/keep squad alive. If someone want a DD class with good heal mystic are there for that.

I don't say cleric DD is bad, i can DD highest than psychic and wizard, but it's not the point, people never take in a squad a cleric to be a main DD.

Yin - Momaganon · July 2012

Can't say much if I am bad cleric or not, but that is not important. More important is that I am enjoying the game.

Of course my first task is keep squad alive and I do feel that i fail if someone ticks their charm.

We usually have more than one cleric in squad because i mostly play with faction and we have relatively many active clerics and it is quite normal to have multiple clerics in random squads too.And one who does lowest dmg takes care of healing. I am quite often backup healer myself.

Sure there are more things than "I like healing, I choose cleric". There are more than just running with squads that are "fixed" classes. There are plenty of ways to play cleric.

Christona - Raging Tide · July 2012

In my opinion, you really need to get up on your spirit cultivation. Get your fb59 done and get bb first of all. In fb59, tell them you haven't don't it and haven't got bb since some people now a days ask for bb on every boss in 59. Be talkative. If you feel super nooby and shy message one person (normally the tank) and ask him to give you information on the bosses. Other than that, heal the people who take damage with ih. Refer to the sticked cleric guides and you will learn heal mechanics and become a great squad cleric in no time. If you have some friends, get them to go on your fb59. It helps me when I go into a new instance and I have a friendly face to tell me what to do. I get very talkative and some times caps that I need info on a boss. Get the info you need b4 the boss not during. Other than that have fun.

SerenityCNB - Dreamweaver · July 2012

to0nz wrote: »

I must admit, I hate most of the time playing in groups...

People are quick to judge and assume, they build their cookie cutter characters and assume that everyone else knows how they expect them to be...

Its annoying and up until this point, avoidable.

Sadly, I am a cleric... A pure magic cleric that has been soloing till now...

At level 75 I have 18 quests where I can not even get past the minions at the start of the area let alone fathom the concept of even getting the boss down 1% before being 2 hit killed.

So fine... I'll find a group...

Oh wait Im a cleric... I'm.... support....

So I read and what do I read... rants...

Rants over how clerics have no idea what they are doing or how they are doing it wrong....

Ok... So can someone give a clear concise explanation of what a cleric should do in a group?

I get some of the concepts....

1.) Pre-Buff everyone, 1 hr group EXCEPT for health/mana UNLESS no one has a food buff already in use.

2.) The tank is the glue, concentrate on him. Heal others when possible
- Question:
- Which way do you heal?
- I have read Chromatic and I have read Ironheart so... which one?

3.) Rez when it is safe... Purify when its safe.... and keep concentrating on tank.

Other than this... I have NO IDEA how to group. I have never Chromatic or BB'd or whatever its called....

In short, I could really use some SOLID pointers here. I still havent done Spiritual Cultivation 59.

Also in short, I realize the value of the group and would hate being refused groups due to lack of knowledge of them so hoping you can help.

Thanks.

It has been a while since I've played, or really commented on the forums. (Real life situations that require my attention, and a few other MMO's that caught my attention when relaxing). However, if you check the link that Venus posted, it will take you to a guide that I wrote a few months ago. I went into detail on some of the instances as well, so that should help you as well. Also, you can PM me on here (Can't guarantee that I will respond quickly), and if you're on Dreamweaver, you can pm me. (Again, I may not be on...but if I am, I will gladly try to help answer any questions that you may have, and run you through your fb59 too so that you can get the skills that you need. (Its really tough to run some of the instances without certain skills, and skills like BB, you'll be expected to have, and use a lot in instances like Frost (FC), and Brim which for you is coming up soon. You'll also be asked for it in your fb79 for those bosses.

If you have any other questions, you can ask them on here, or wherever, and I'll do my best to answer them.

That said, good luck in game. and in squadplay.

Ny_Naeve - Dreamweaver · July 2012

I can certainly empathize with your situation. My husband and I really had no guild until about our 9X's. It was a big change for me to go from duoing everything with him to looking after the health and safety of an entire squad when we began running with guildies. And, even the best guildmates may not be eager to do a sitrep on things they feel you should already know. I had no teacher, and it made things much more difficult for me. The cleric guides here are a wealth of information and I am grateful to those who chose to take the time to write guides to our class and builds. But, as helpful as they are, sometimes reading about an instance or situation just doesn't compare to actually running in a group or running in the instance a few times. Once you have actually experienced those caves or bosses a few times in a squad the guides tend to make much more sense. I am always up for sharing my experiences and knowledge with a new cleric - I love the class and love the social aspect of this game. So, my best advice to you is to find a mentor or a group of friends who understand that you are trying to expand your gaming experience to include squad scenarios and are in need of some tutorial runs of instances. And, as someone else stated, getting your 59 culti done is important. people WILL expect you to BB when you can. It is a great skill, albiet over utilized imo. If nothing else once you get BB you can watch a bit more at the boss fights to see what a certain boss does ( debuff squadmates etc). You don't do a whole lot while in BB other than make sure you dont run out of mana. It is always best to inform your squad when you are new to an instance. "Hey guys, what does this boss do? WIll I need to be ready to puri the tank, does he debuff the tank?" If you squad is not full of jerks they may give you some information or tips. Best wishes to you and happy clericing!

Solo cleric needs to learn how to play with others...

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