76 Shaman v 3.0 Author: Garbad_the_Weak Version: 1.08 Page 1 Shaman: A member of certain tribal societies who acts as a medium between the visible world and an invisible spirit world and who practices magic or sorcery for purposes of healing, divination, and control over natural events. - Webster’s New World, as quoted by dictionary.com Hi! My name is Garbad_the_Weak, and I am writing this guide to tell you about what I call the PvP Shaman, a druid who combines Summoning, elemental, and shape shifting to form a strong and different PvP char. This guide is for 76 Legit PvP with a focus on Druid vs. Druid and does not give any advice on leveling/Mfing. Clan 76 Legit First off, a note about 76 Legit PvP. PvP can be really fun. PvP is not the same as Pking. Pking is when one person goes hostile without warning, usually vs. a much weaker character. PvP is when two people decide to fight for fun, to test their strength and skill. In general, people walk away from a legit PvP game congratulating your opponent (win or lose), talking strategy, and making a new friend (or arch-enemy).  Clan 76 Legit is a clan devoted to dupe free dueling. We focus on preventing dupes, balancing dueling for all classes, and having a good time. For details on 76 Legit, for a list of rules, or to apply visit www.76legit.com My Philosophy with the Shaman The Shaman is all about the challenge. I had always wanted to make an elemental druid, in part because everyone always talks about how pathetic they are, etc. Everyone says an elemental druid can't win a duel, and my goal was to find a way.  Part of what I refer to by the challenge is this... When I met GrimmFang back when I was a noob, I was in awe of his skills and gear. I eventually got so I could beat GrimmFang with my Barbarian, but I never once beat him Druid vs Druid. To me, beating GrimmFang Druid vs Druid was the ultimate pvp challenge. I tried several melee bears and wolves, but I simply could not beat him. At the time, I doubted I would ever have enough Stones of Jordons (SoJs) to buy a godly weapon, much less charms, etc. Being unable to punch through the mountain, I tried to think of ways to go over it. I began trying to think of different and "untried" ideas (at the time I "created" this build, I had never heard of RedWizard, who in all fairness pioneered the Shockbear, which this is a hybrid of) to beat the greatest of all druids. This build is not for everyone. This char is strange and fairly difficult to play. A lot of this build's viability will depend on your skill at dodging and your judgment on when to cast what. However, it can be highly successful. Of the three shaman hybrids that entered the 'USWest Druid Only' dueling tourney in July of 2003, all three made it into the top ten. Your main challenge will be against other fast ranged attackers (mainly Amazons and Sorceresses), but you can hold your own quite well against the others. I won't promise you a perfect win ratio, but I will promise you a fun build that is a blast to play, takes skill as a player, and has at least a decent shot of winning almost all fights.  Skills As a Shaman, your primary skills are your bear and volcano. You should:  Skills to max: Volcano  Bear [Summon]  Lycanthropy  1+ into Oak sage (see note below)  1+ into Heart of the Wolverine 1+ into Spirit of Barbs 1+ into shockwave 1+ into cyclone armor 1 raven 1 into all other prerequisites Notes on Summoning Skill Choices Shockwave is also not worth maxing, IMHO. Shockwave counts as physical damage, meaning the DR and PvP penalty still apply. This also means the damage of shockwave itself is insignificant. Furthermore, Shockwave is not a true stun, meaning more points do not increase stun duration. HOWEVER, shockwave can help clear out an opponents summons, such as wolves. Which Spirit is Best? The nice thing about a Shaman is because you have such high skills, a few points into each spirit “maxes” them. As of 1.09, there is a bug meaning spirits do not provide any additional bonuses past lvl 20. This means one point is as good as maxing, for now. For you, one point into each spirit gives you the flexibility to use each one and be more team friendly. I will address this more in battle strategies. Other Summons DO NOT max dire wolves! This is critical! Dire wolves will increase the life of your bear, which actually hurts you! You can always recast your bear and you do not want your opponent to be able to leech off him. Maxing Spirit wolves is not worth it, IMHO. The additional AR and defense can help your bear, but I would prefer spending my points elsewhere. Statistics For stats, figure out the max strength needed to wear your gear (counting +stats from items/charms). All remaining points should go into VIT from there. You won't need mana other than from gear, so don't invest in energy. For my personal druid, I have something like 13 base strength! Total Blocking = (Blocking * (Dexterity - 15)) / (Character Level * 2) or Required dex for 75% block = ((2 * clvl * 75) / Shield Block) + 15 My Gear Hand: Suicide Branch with a 12% resist all 7% FHR jewel Hand: Whistans Guard with BER Hand: Etheral Fleshrender With FAL Hand: Etheral Lidless Wall with FAL Arm: Vipermagi with Ber Helm: Shako with BER Belt: 15% DR string Boots: Perfect waterwalks Glov: Bloodfists Rings: 20 dex raven frost Rings: 10% fast cast, 14 str 27% lit resist 24% fire resist Amy: Rare amulet with: +2 druid, 10% FC, +18 str, +16 dex, prismatic  Charms  1 +1 summon with 12% FHR 9 +1 summoning with 30+ life 10 20 resist + runwalk/life as needed I also keep a jalas mane in my inventory for shifting purposes. Notes - This setup will gives me 48% DR, 7363 life, 11 fpc, and lvl 36 grizzly.  Why Summon Charms rather than Elemental?  Elemental damage is linear, meaning the difference between a level 20 and a level 21 volcano is the same as the difference between a level 40 and a level 41 volcano. The damage on your bear, on the other hand, is exponential (as in growth relative to itself). In other words, +1 elemental adds the same damage no matter what the level, while +1 to your bear has MUCH more effect at level 40 than level 30. The damage difference between a level 40 bear and a level 35 bear is huge, while the difference between a level 35 volcano and a 40 volcano isn’t. To show this mathematically: Skill Lvl Bear Volcano 20 660-726 155-160 25 980-1053 215-220 30 1350-1431 275-280 35 1170-1858 335-360 40 2240-2336 395-420 44 2652-2754 443-448 Your bear will be one of your primary weapons, and squeezing out the highest level bear as possible will greatly add to your damage.  If I cast a bear/oak with + skill weapons/shield and switch weapons, does my bear revert down to the lower level? YES! This was a mistake in version 2.1. Bears do revert to a lower level, meaning you should use your weapon switch to boost lycanthropy levels.  Formulas you should know Faster Hit Recovery Breaks  Base = 7 frames 18% = 6 frames 48% = 5 frames 125% = 4 frames Casting Breaks as a Bear Base = 18 fpc 5 % = 17 10 % = 16 20 % = 15 30 % = 14 50 % = 13 70 % = 12 100 % = 11 165 % = 10 Run/Walk [120 * % increase/ 120 + % increase]  Primary Skills/Strategies in Battle Shaman will spend a lot of time avoiding damage. Although you make a reasonably good tank you will be best served in dodging (mainly because you can’t leech). I will discuss how to use some of your skills to help you avoid damage below, but be advised, your dodging skills (and lag) will need to be sharp, in particular when you are using your elemental skills. This is the challenge and the fun of a Shaman. YOUR skill will determine the outcomes of battles, as your dodging/knowledge of when to attack make all the difference. In many ways, a Shaman is the most fun PvP char I have ever made.  You will also use a lot of your efforts to stun your target to set up stronger attacks, keep your opponent from chasing you, or steer them where you want. It will require fast thinking, knowledge of many PvP builds, and experience. This build is viable, more so than most people think, yet you will struggle against a well built ranged attacker.  Again though, let me warn you. Several people email me in frustration after first trying to duel Shaman. It is a bit tricky and you need to be able to toggle hotkeys quickly. Shaman are similar in play style to Hybrid asns or necros, in my opinion.  Bear Summon Bear is a misunderstood skill. Many people think bears are only lightning rods, distractions, or worthless altogether. I have even heard experienced duelers say a bear is a liability as it allows your opponent free leech! This mistake of thinking is where your build will gain its greatest advantage. Few people will expect a measly summoned bear to do significant damage, and you can often win duels before people recognize how you are attacking. A level 41 bear can hit for over 2.3k (before HoW), but remember, the damage he deals is calculated different than normal attacks! This is the strength of your build. A bear that hits for 2k will do much more damage than a player who hits for 2k, as he is a minion. In PvP, there is a 1/4 penalty applied to most attacks. However, for summons and certain other types of damage, the penalty is only 1/2, meaning your bears effective damage is doubled in PvP! Bear damage is also in a very tight range and combined with Heart of Wolverine, your bear's swing has the potential to do more physical PvP Damage than ANY other attack! Your bear can routinely do 2000+ damage a swing, after PvP Penalty! When combined with team skills (such as paladins fanaticism, amplify damage, etc) your bears damage becomes unthinkable.  However, although bears can do crushing damage, your bear will almost never beat someone one on one. Your bear is most effective when he can get in free hits, is ignored, etc. If you opponent can fight your bear without distractions, your bear is basically free leech for them. Not many people are stupid enough to let a bear walk up and whack them; your goal is to cast a bear on top of them at a bad time (right as they start casting, end a WW, etc). I generally cast my bear behind my opponent, forcing them to turn away from me to fight the bear.  To use your bear effectively, you will want to stun then somehow (shockwave or volc, usually) then toss your bear on top of them. If your opponent risks attacking your bear, you can stunlock them (and recast your bear). Instead, they have to run, giving my bear few hits. Bears do minor stun by themselves, but in tandem with a well placed volcano, ravens, and shockwave, few people will be able to get out, much less attack. Even if they do escape, they often won't be able to tell it was your bear that was killing them! This strategy is similar to assassins using Mind Blast and Traps to stun, and then Dragon Fighting in for the kill. The idea is to get them reeling, them pull out the big guns. BTW, don’t forget to shapeshift with your Isle and Lidless out, it possible. The extra skill levels will boost your defense and life. Similarly, cast your bear with your switch as often as possible.  Volcano  Use volcano to blast stationary targets (trappers, necros, fohers, etc) and to hit areas. Some uses include tossing it up and then running to it (similar to the Armageddon trick), and click locking them (similar to foh). This attack will be a great asset when fighting ranged attackers, or versus melee who start to shy away from you.  In very rare situations, volcano can stun lock opponents, giving your bear time to attack. Another trick is to remember how people think. Few chars will just stand in the middle of an erupting volcano, even if it does almost no damage to them. Use this to your advantage. For example, cast a volcano under a zon. The zon will start to run. Guess which direction she will run (most people have a pattern) and have your bear waiting for her. Your bear might get a lucky swipe in, which can be crushing. If she turns to attack your bear, let loose another volcano.  Molten Boulder  I use this spell as a deterrent. If you know your opponent is likely to approach from a certain angle, have a boulder there waiting. This will make them swing around it, giving you more time to cast/flee.  Another tactic I try is when I am getting chased. I will cast the boulder in the direction I want to run, then follow it. If your opponent chases right after you, they will hit it and get knockbacked (which lags the heck out of them). This can give you some breathing room, and really helps vs. melee that are faster than you (especially barbs).  Werebear/Shockwave  You will shift into a bear to stun. Shockwave has a small radius, and you should begin shooting it as they approach. Against poor FHR opponents, your shockwave/ravens/vine can send them into stunlock, giving your bear a few easy hits. This trick alone will help you demolish most Druids. I originally called this build the Dogcatcher because Druids naturally poor FHR combined with a lack of ranged attacks makes druids the natural victim of this trick. Many wolves will think their bear will save them, but you are likely to stunlock their bear, as well.  This trick works well vs. druids, ok vs. assassins and melee zons, and is risky vs. barbs and palas. I have noticed a general trend among many pvp chars to ignore FHR, which helps you. You can control the “firing pattern” of shockwave by having your mouse nearing or further from your druid. For example, if you hold the mouse far away and shift cast, the radius will be very small but intense. If you hold it close, the spread will be wider but weaker. Shockwave is a VERY team friendly spell.  Oak Sage, Heart of Wolverine, Spirit of Barbs  Oak is just to keep you alive. If you team duel, your teammates will love it! Although I do not think Oak Sage healing is fair, you should know about it. Because of the way druid life bonuses (shifting and oak) work, you can use oak sage to heal. After the spirit is killed and the effect wears off, you can simply recast it to regain life. Heart of the Wolverine is to boost your bear’s damage. I usually start a duel with HoW and change as needed. SoB is used in rare situations, such as vs. another Shaman. SoB + summons can rip his bear to pieces. SoB + dogs might also help you vs. barbs, etc.  Ravens  Primarily for blocklock, although they can do significant damage over time.  Class by Class I am not going to give you exhaustive tips, just a little idea. Few ideas will work for long, so dodge well, think smart, learn your opponents' weakness and watch your opponents movement patterns (most people have them, even if they try and hide them...  Amazons  Volc under them, try your bear. Sit in town and accuse them of using pots....  Basically, you aren't going to beat a good bowazon consistently. Your only hope is their poor resistances and FHR (generally). Shaman struggle vs. ranged attacks, and zons are one of the major reasons why. Her leech will be a huge factor. Against Jabbazons, you will be ok. Zon's reasonably poor FHR makes them vulnerable to stunning and bearing them. In addition, because jab is uninterruptible, many jabbers have 0% fhr… Sorceresses  Another class you basically have to get lucky to beat. Dodge those orb/hydras and good luck! Barbarians  Not as hopeless as most people think. You can try various stunning/avoidance tricks (such as the boulder, etc) and wear them down with volc. Your bear will not work probably as a barb can easily whirl out. Play smart, and this is possible. It takes a while though, as barbs tend to have very high life. My biggest bone against fighting barbarians is the server desynch. I hate wearing 3/4 of the barb's life away only to die in one hit after a server hiccup. You may want to try SoB/dogs, although I am not a fan of this trick. I try to sidestep and pray the barb tries to run up and zerk me. If he does this, you can probably stunlock him. WW/Javas are hard for you. Paladins Paladins naturally fast hit recovery is a big threat. It will be hard to stun lock him, although it can be done. If he uses hammer/foh, just volcano under him. You should have about 3x as much life, so trade hits with mages if you can. Don't forget to stack your lightning resists to negate conviction. Force him to retreat if possible. The Armageddon as you run can work wonders vs chargers, zealots, etc. Necromancers  Watch out for IBS, and move carefully. Volcano will be your best friend, really your only friend. Every time he even thinks about casting, nuke him. If he gets a prison around you, immediately throw up a bear right in his face. Hopefully, he will start casting, right as your bear appears on him... If he curses your bear, recast. Assassins You can do fine vs. MA assassins, stun them and let your bear get nasty. These guys use a lot of the same tricks you do, so don't get stunned.  Trappers are hard, as your poor FHR hurts. If you sense you are about to get MB locked, cast your bear on them. If they continue the MB, your bear will punish them. If they break off, continue firing. Again, your volcano can help them to back off of traps, but traps are more effective. Druids  Druid vs Druid will be your specialty. Your druid friends will be impressed, as you should beat almost any druid with ease.  Even a druid with the 125% FHR break will struggle against your stun tactics, and you should be as fast as anyone. Many druids will try to cast their bear on top of you, don’t worry too much, your bear is better and chances are your shockwave will catch it also if you are smart. Some druids have tried SoB + dogs against me, with the idea that my bear will kill itself. This is true, but keep the shockwaves coming. You should be able to clear out the dogs in a few shots, and they will run out of mana much more quickly than you do.  Team Duels First off, Oak > all. Keep Oak up at all times, as your team will love it. Currently, 76 Legit rules are pretty lax on oak sage healing. If your oak dies, you are allowed to recast it before your aura wears off. As your teammates move in and out of your aura, they may regain life. Because this cannot be avoided, it has not been banned yet. Second, use shockwave as much as possible. When I team duel I often ignore my elemental tree altogether and just stun and tank. As always, necromancers and paladins and barbarians have a lot of skills that can work well together. I will leave it to you to find your favorite team. Credits I hope you liked my guide! I tried to make it fairly comprehensive. I would be happy to talk PvP with you, so feel free to contact me! I have written several others as well, so if you are interested, email me! I look forward to any comments, suggestions, or challenges from strong, legit Druids!  Garbad_the_Weak  I would like to thank Grimm_Fang, who changed this game for me, my friend Mutare, whose strength keeps me sharp, and all of the many other strong, legit duelers who constantly force me to get better. Thanks to the Druid Forum and 76 Legit, for the input and dueling practice that went into this build, as well as for being a great group of gamers!  Thanks, and see ya next time!  Input is welcome! 0 Please log in to post... Please log in. Use your Diii.net Forum account. Username: Remember me? Password: Want to register?     Lost password?