Most useful and useless God Form?

NinjaKai

Forge Runner

Join Date: Feb 2006

UK

Duality Of The Dragon

@crucifix: Since when did the application of forms not matter in PvE. And since when have other PvP areas been 'trash' as you call it. Please atleast give some justification for your opinions.

knives

knives

Jungle Guide

Join Date: Jun 2005

USA

Grenths Rejects [GR]

Me/

Quote:
Originally Posted by NinjaKai
Avatar of Lyssa doesn't interrupt it only damages foes activating skills. So you won't get the extra damage from frustration. And Dervish have no attacks that interrupt. I didn't mean to interrupt. It acts the same as AC but has shorter cast time, recharge time, and longer duration. The extra damage is totally irrelevant. Spells take 50% longer = twice as long, no?

Coloneh

Coloneh

Furnace Stoker

Join Date: Nov 2006

D/W

im just saying that there are better elites. VoS pretty much makes the avatars look like crap. and you could always use an elite from your secondary. im just tired of people thinking that avatars are what make devishes good. its conviction, mystic regeneration, and imbune that make dervishes good.

Kijik Oni Hanryuu

Desert Nomad

Join Date: Feb 2006

the 7th level of HELL! J/K Somewhere in GW assassinating things

[acid]members of the KAWS alliance

A/

Avatars aren't what MAKES the dervish good, the dervishes synergy makes it good, just because the Avatars aren't the only thing that makes a dervish good doesn't mean they suck.. and you forget that VoS has a major drawback.. YOu can't cast spells either.. so if they decide to send their warrior to rage in your face..yer screwed without a competent monk, and even then that monk could be busy with other things, and expecting you to heal yourself, you being a dervish and all. I also know that there are other good elites, I often use Reaper's Sweep on my Dervish when I am going damage.

Oh and Crucifix.. make some sense, then I will take apart your statement and render whatever you say utterly useless mmk? The one part that was clear, I will easily prove you wrong on. 1 do you even know how much damage reduction 40 armor does? Once you do come back to me on that, also, you are suggesting we take out 1 skill and put in 4 SKILLS, that's half our damn skillbar genius!

Superdarth

Superdarth

Krytan Explorer

Join Date: Aug 2006

Melandru is probably the most useful because of the immunity to conditions and the +200 hp, the most useless is Lyssa, since it realy only makes a diffrence if the foe is attacking..its a plus but definetly the weakest.

Ayamari

Ascalonian Squire

Join Date: Nov 2006

[bleh]

N/

Quote:
Originally Posted by Superdarth
Melandru is probably the most useful because of the immunity to conditions and the +200 hp, the most useless is Lyssa, since it realy only makes a diffrence if the foe is attacking..its a plus but definetly the weakest. Activating skills not attacking. ;_;

Durik Lakmor

Frost Gate Guardian

Join Date: Sep 2006

Missouri

Pearl of Great Price

R/Mo

I wouldn't call any of them useless, I have used all of them in PvE with some use, exception being Grenth I haven't found a use for Grenth in PvE yet, however his PvP strengths are well known and make up for this.

NOT IN ORDER

Balth - +40 armor and 33% run and holy damage. the run is always nice when needed in an emergency. +40 armor seems to do a noticeable job in addition to conviction, vital boon and of course mystic regen. Falls short on dmg...of course unless it is undead.

Lyssa - Underated avatar. That extra dmg can be just plain amazing if combined with some minor tanking skills and the right attacks skills + IAS. The extra energy is decent and the low cast cost kicks major arse. Downside is that it may seem bland at first and the extra damage is conditional.

Dwayna - Yeah, even more ways to keep your dervish alive and well. No real bonus to damage at all is its downside of course your groups monks will appreciate seeing you in this form.

Melandru - +200 hp (mixes great wtih Vital Boon), condtions...what condtions? living up to the name of the god this is the "ranger" of the avatars, it can be put into any avatar build in place of another and do well in pve situations. Downside, 25e to cast.

I have to say it is hard to rank which is the most "useful" and most "useless" it really depends on the situation, team you have, skills you throw in and such. In a situation where you have a bunch of hexing undead creatures Dwayna or Balthazar would possibly be a better choice than Melandru. Lyssa makes a good spiker and in pve i find that with a balanced group it works best in the dreaded Gate of Madness mission.

draxynnic

draxynnic

Furnace Stoker

Join Date: Nov 2005

[CRFH]

While I'd admit I haven't really given Lyssa and Grenth a fair go yet, I have a certain fondness for Dwayna. With a build that works off using skills in rapid succession (I generally use enchantments like Heart of Holy Flame which are usually immediately thrown off with Pious Assault or Signet of Pious Light) the healing often simply overpowers the damage coming in.

I had my Survivor track stopped while using Avatar of Balthazar, so I'm not too fond of that form. Admittedly, though, I made a significant tactical blunder that led to that - in hindsight, I shouldn't have been playing a character with an active Survivor track while that tired.

NinjaKai

Forge Runner

Join Date: Feb 2006

UK

Duality Of The Dragon

All god forms have the same flaw when a player relies on one solely for their build. Since builds that revolve around a single god form are useless when the form runs out. Balancing a build to be effective when not in god form is definitely a trick to master.

crucifix

Lion's Arch Merchant

Join Date: Oct 2006

Ohio

R/Mo

Quote:
Originally Posted by NinjaKai
@crucifix: Since when did the application of forms not matter in PvE. And since when have other PvP areas been 'trash' as you call it. Please atleast give some justification for your opinions. OK, let me explain this then.

Forms in PvE: there are so many better elite options than forms that dont leave you stranded for a huge amount of time.

Trash PvP: FA, AB, RA. hopefully enough said, but im doubting it. FA: just lame, its PvE PvP, or im thinking a lot of the pve scrubs would like to think that. This is useless, dumbass people running around with dumbass builds and to many little PvE nublets QQ ing about luxons and kurzics. AB: see FA. RA: RA just angers me. Its almost impossibe to play in there because of the plethora of noobs that have no concept of what a viable build is. RA is more of the same QQ ing wammo invasion.

sure i may seem like an ass, but its because I am. Theres your justification.

for those of you that still want to play a melee dervish... see onslaught.

ensoriki

ensoriki

Forge Runner

Join Date: Aug 2006

Canada bro.

A/D

*takes the drugs away from crucifix*

Str0b0

Desert Nomad

Join Date: Feb 2006

North Carolina

N/Me

Forms in PvE, at least to my mind, aren't supposed to be something you base your build on like say SS. Example, I'm very fond of Dwayna, Ok So I'll toss up my enchants and wade on into combat. I won't put my form on yet but it's in my skill bar. As soon as I start stacking up hexes and degen I'll drop Dwayna on and bam I'm good to go. I out heal the degen and lots of the degen goes away as I drop hexes. It's good stuff. The skill continues to recharge while I'm in the form so I'm only really out of luck for about a minute and usually most battles are over because of damage output by the team, long before that minute has elapsed. If the battle is still raging on after that minute then it's usually because there are hexes and degen being thrown around and so now I'm ready for Dwayna to come back on again and save my proverbial hind quarters. Just because it's elite doesn't mean it has to be the main skill in your arsenal. Elites can support your other non elite skills too.

Honestly if you're looking for an elite to build an entire build around then Ebon Dust Aura is probably a better choice for a melee dervish. An Ebon scythe, ebon dust aura, crippling sweep, aura of thorns and you've got the potential to put some hurting on some enemies real fast. That's an elite you base a build around, not forms. Forms are useful in PvE you just have to have a build that can hold it's own without the use of the form or find a synergy with the form.

Esprit

Esprit

Desert Nomad

Join Date: Jun 2005

Dvd Forums [DVDF]

E/

Side Note: <3 AB PvP

Avatar of Lyssa is probably my favorite form and the damage spikes are worth the elite spot. I used to run Avatar of Balthazar a lot, but found that I am not the source of focus fire in PvE most of the time.

Grenth may be nice in PvP, but in PvE it's a waste. You really don't run up against enough enchanted foes to make it worth the elite spot, you are better off with Ebon Dust Aura for damage mitigation.

Avatar of Dwayna is nice for areas with heavy hex foes and the extra healing is a nice bonus.

Avatar of Melanduru is my least favorite, first it has a high energy cost, limiting you for a bit on what you can use, unless you have someone spamming enchants on you.

ss1986v2

ss1986v2

Wilds Pathfinder

Join Date: Apr 2006

Mo/

all the forms have their places, and all have some nice effects. for me, i dont like building around the avatars though. work on your build, find something that works, and plug in an avatar for some added bonus. in the end, its all a matter of preference. but heres my take:

melandru: very nice. the +200 hp is nice and the immunity to conditions is cool. my favorite aspect of melandru is the synergy with wearying strike. + dmg, deep wound, and spammable. whats not to like. the cost is the only downside. you cant just throw melandru into any build you feel like, you have to take into account your energy use. the elemental dmg can be a plus or a minus, depending on the situation.

dwayna: has its places, and does its job very well. i noticed that later in the game, hexes get a bit heavier, so the more hex removal you can muster the better. the health is nice but not what the form is all about. you will love this skill when you run into faintheartedness along with cover hexes. dwayna can become a real lifesaver.

baltazaar: i dont hate it as much as every one else, but it is my least favorite. as stated you can get the effect through using other skills. but what if you dont want to devote 3-4 skills? all the effects are ok, and theres not really any downside to using it. the holy dmg bonus is better than the elemental bonus of grenth and melandru. form of choice against undead, but maybe not your first choice elsewhere.

lyssa: my form of choice. low cost, conditional +dmg, added energy, and fits into most any build without any conflict. under an IAS you can dish out some nice dmg, and even when not using an IAS, timing your hits or using a 3/4 sec cast attack will still increase your dmg. can be a casters worst nightmare. or a frenzy/heal sig wammos too.

grenth: arguably the best form in pvp, along with melandru. enchantment rending without the drawbacks of OoA. doesnt have the same power in pve due to limited enchantment use, but you can still find places where it can be effective. as with melandru, the elemental dmg can be a plus or a minus, depending on the situation.

platnium_playa

platnium_playa

Frost Gate Guardian

Join Date: May 2006

the luxon scourge

W/

Quote:
Originally Posted by Skuld
[skill]avatar of lyssa[/skill] + [skill]Twin Moon Sweep[/skill] + [skill]protector's strike[/skill] ^^ lol..prot strike is str. attr....woot for the +10dmg if there running.

dgb

Jungle Guide

Join Date: Sep 2005

Mo/Me

Quote:
Originally Posted by platnium_playa
lol..prot strike is str. attr....woot for the +10dmg if there running. Target gains +3 joyfulness. I am the spatula.

Look at the skill again...

draxynnic

draxynnic

Furnace Stoker

Join Date: Nov 2005

[CRFH]

*looks again*

*is reminded of something he coincidentally noticed about Protector's Strike earlier today*

Ow.

That's just plain devious. My hat goes off to you.

You've been reading Ranger spike builds, haven't you?

(To anyone who hasn't worked it out: The Strength attribute is completely irrelevant. Skuld isn't going to be fulfilling the condition for the damage from Protector's Strike anyway...)

EDIT: Have you considered trying out Swordsmanship for Sun and Moon - although that does require adrenaline, which may result in missed opportunities. On the other side, it does let you throw in Savage Slash... which adds insult to injury by interrupting the skill they tried to use as well as just plain adding injury if it was a spell...

7thPawn

Ascalonian Squire

Join Date: Jan 2007

Good info here about the various avatars etc. Seeing some different points of view so it's good to see people are using them for different things for different reasons. So seeing that some people are having fun with them I decided to go uncap some of them. Quite hillarious to see like 15 guys in the courtyard surrounding the guy I need to smoke. So I figured I would try to peel them off one/couple at a time and got completely destroyed. Is there any particular way to handle smoking these turkeys if they are in their bloody strongholds? I hope someone has some sort of trick on the nasties for these skills cause I gots owned something nasty for a bit tonight.

Skuld

Skuld

Furnace Stoker

Join Date: Sep 2005

Thousend Tigers Apund Ur Head [Ttgr]

A/

Quote:
Originally Posted by draxynnic
Have you considered trying out Swordsmanship for Sun and Moon - although that does require adrenaline, which may result in missed opportunities. On the other side, it does let you throw in Savage Slash... which adds insult to injury by interrupting the skill they tried to use as well as just plain adding injury if it was a spell... Swords have less damage, and you can only get 12 swordsmanship, I wouldn't recommend it, and old guildy was using that; not too impressive.

edit: You can use Twin Moon Sweep with a sword, but I think the higher Scythe damage is better.

sage tank

Frost Gate Guardian

Join Date: Apr 2006

W/Mo

It is just wrong to brand one avatar for best and worst, each has their own special effect and if you synergies well they are all overpowered, which is why you can never make avatar duration 100%


Lyssa Dagger build is brutal, the +40 damage bonus can trigger a lot when you use dagger attacks.

Grenth, well, is grenth, great in GvG and HA when your team need to put on more pressure and remove enchantment protection

Balthazar makes good flag runner in pvp and Tank at certain pve areas

Menlendru can be brute with +200 hp and condition bonus, you can use chilling victory and victorious sweep and weary strike without concern

Well, Dwaynes is Dwaynes, it makes you very hard to kill

ensoriki

ensoriki

Forge Runner

Join Date: Aug 2006

Canada bro.

A/D

sage is on crack....Balthazar is the worst


There are better flag runners
There are better tank forms.
The holy damage isnt armor ignoring
No extra damage
Crippling makes the speed bonus nothing
Armor doesnt matter if your getting degend
Dunkoro can own you
All the other forms can beat you 1 on 1 in the hands of a skilled player not even a skilled Balthazar user can reach effectiveness of the other forms

Shadow forms pwns you

ss1986v2

ss1986v2

Wilds Pathfinder

Join Date: Apr 2006

Mo/

Quote:
Originally Posted by ensoriki
sage is on crack....Balthazar is the worst
while i agree that balthz doesnt have the same niche role that the other forms have, and that its my least favorite, i think your argument against it isnt very accurate:
Quote: There are better flag runners agreed, but who said it had
to be the best at flag running?
Quote: There are better tank forms. agreed, but who said it had to be the best form for tanking?
Quote: The holy damage isnt armor ignoring yes but it still lets you bypass both +armor vs physical and elemental, unlike the other forms.
Quote: No extra damage the only form that offers +dmg is lyssa. so do all of the forms suck because of that? or just balthz?
Quote:
Crippling makes the speed bonus nothing the same can be said for any speed boost. crip a ele flag runner and they run just as slow.
Quote:
Armor doesnt matter if your getting degend true, but what about direct dmg? last time i checked, there was more dmg types out there than just degen.
Quote:
Dunkoro can own you um, this one i dont even know where to go with? do you mean dunk owns him at healing? than yes of course i agree. if you mean he owns him at tanking, then no you would be wrong there. and if you are referring to a 1 vs 1 fight, then the argument fails outright.
Quote:
All the other forms can beat you 1 on 1 in the hands of a skilled player not even a skilled Balthazar user can reach effectiveness of the other forms again, bringing up 1 vs 1 equals fail. gw has little to no place for 1 vs 1 fights. and using 1 vs 1 fights in an argument is just horrible. any specifically designed build can beat any other build, given the chance to build against it. period. and beside that, id like to know how a dwayna form user beats a balthz user with the exact same build otherwise? slap on some enchants and mystic regen, take into account the armor bonus and the health bonus respectively, and the battle is a draw. the same for lyssa potentially, as well as melandru, although it would be tougher with its deep wound ability. grenth is the only one that has the potential to easily win outright because it disrupts the rest of the dervishs build, not because it beats the other form outright.
Quote:
Shadow forms pwns you last i checked, shadow form ownz all of the forms. and any melee as well as many caster. why even bring that up?

ensoriki

ensoriki

Forge Runner

Join Date: Aug 2006

Canada bro.

A/D

Quote:
Originally Posted by ss1986v2
while i agree that balthz doesnt have the same niche role that the other forms have, and that its my least favorite, i think your argument against it isnt very accurate:

agreed, but who said it had to be the best at flag running?
This is use for GVG, who cares if its not the best its not even on the top 10

agreed, but who said it had to be the best form for tanking?
Who didnt say?

yes but it still lets you bypass both +armor vs physical and elemental, unlike the other forms.
There are also other damage conversions

the only form that offers +dmg is lyssa. so do all of the forms suck because of that? or just balthz?
No but thats just one more advantage another form has over it

the same can be said for any speed boost. crip a ele flag runner and they run just as slow.
Whats the basis of balthazar? armor and speed

true, but what about direct dmg? last time i checked, there was more dmg types out there than just degen.
youd get scrapped by any spiker.in direct damage...most sins will have you on the floor poisoned/bleeding and then finish you off

um, this one i dont even know where to go with? do you mean dunk owns him at healing? than yes of course i agree. if you mean he owns him at tanking, then no you would be wrong there. and if you are referring to a 1 vs 1 fight, then the argument fails outright.

Dunkoro can heal everything Balthazar sends at him WHILE degening, ergo Dunkoro wins

again, bringing up 1 vs 1 equals fail. gw has little to no place for 1 vs 1 fights. and using 1 vs 1 fights in an argument is just horrible. any specifically designed build can beat any other build, given the chance to build against it. period. and beside that, id like to know how a dwayna form user beats a balthz user with the exact same build otherwise? slap on some enchants and mystic regen, take into account the armor bonus and the health bonus respectively, and the battle is a draw. the same for lyssa potentially, as well as melandru, although it would be tougher with its deep wound ability. grenth is the only one that has the potential to easily win outright because it disrupts the rest of the dervishs build, not because it beats the other form outright.
Last time I checked Most people Only hit 1 person unless using an Aoe, and since not everyone is stupid enough to crowd into the derv your targeting 1 person, who in retrospect will target you back resulting in a 1 on 1 with the chance of one or both of you being healed being a monk where the situation is still 1 on 1 with support

last i checked, shadow form ownz all of the forms. and any melee as well as many caster. why even bring that up?
Sadly shadowform has the same disadvantage the other forms have, except it wears off even faster. Case in point it doesnt own them, it can just dance in their face for awhile So la la la la la
BALTHAzar is the worst form!

draxynnic

draxynnic

Furnace Stoker

Join Date: Nov 2005

[CRFH]

I was thinking that the sword's faster attack rate would let you get more hits in during a given skill use, and make it more likely you'll be able to pull off the two-swings-in-one skill and have time for the followup before the enemy finishes their skill. Yes, the sword is less damaging than the scythe, but the main damage engine is coming from the form, not the weapon. And it also opens up the choice to use a candy shield - or a real one, if you can spare the attributes - for a little extra armour.

Still, if it's been tried, experience > theorycraft. I've lost count of the number of builds I've experimented with that looked good on paper but didn't work in practise.

Incidentally, my thought on the forms was that Balthy was intended to be the 'default' form - you use the other forms against specific opponents (Dwayna against hexers, Grenth against enchanters, Lyssa against spellcasters (especially ones with long casting times) and Melandru against condition-users), while Balth is your fallback if not facing the opposition that the other forms are designed for. The problem - for Balthy - is that with builds designed to use them, Dwayna, Lyssa and Melandru can all stand up quite well even if the effect they are intended to counter isn't present.

Overall, if you put a build together without considering the forms and then went looking for a form to add afterwards, Balthazar may well be the best to use (assuming you haven't fluked into a build that does synergise well, like I did with Dwayna). However, Balthazar doesn't have any synergies, while the goddess forms do.

Kijik Oni Hanryuu

Desert Nomad

Join Date: Feb 2006

the 7th level of HELL! J/K Somewhere in GW assassinating things

[acid]members of the KAWS alliance

A/

Enso.. you really must be mislead, I will gladly take my Mystic Tank against you in a 1v1 and we will see if you can kill me. Balth doesn't suck, like I have said before, with the right build all the forms synergize perfectly. Oh and your idea of "it can be countered" works against all the other forms too. Melandru.. he wastes all his energy casting it, so just E-deny him. Grenth, blind him or cripple and kite, Dwayna, just don't use hexes and take Dwayna on head to head, Lyssa, make sure that if you have to use a long cast don't use it when Lyssa is raging in your face.

There, by your way of looking it I have made all of the avatars look like complete crap.. gg kthxbye

7thPawn

Ascalonian Squire

Join Date: Jan 2007

Finally got advice on the avatar thing and got them all. Was thinking of the battle the whole wrong way. Alter the thought pattern and blamo magico you win. About the same thing goes for the avatars themselves. When I was using them as the staple for what I was doing I was not doing as well. When I sort of squeezed it in, like some people mentioned here, into what I was already doing, it enhanced an already destructive experience. lol.

Kijik I have to say that your Mystic Tank is a rather impressive piece of work. I ran into the link for it one magical day looking at how I was supposed to play a dervish and wow even in PvE it is rather amazing to see what you can do if you group everyone together for the kill. It seems everyone has their little favorites with the avatars. It's like saying which breakfast cereal is better. I can see their use respectively, but although her fashion sense licks, Lyssa is what I usually pop out when I have like 8 badguys running down to lay a beating down on me. Like some mentioned here I was not using the form as a main part of what I was doing, I was simply enhancing what Kijik had put together for a build, and to impressive effect. Bad guys use abilitys like mad, and as soon as I am Lyssa for my whopping 73 seconds, and as soon as my Heart Of Fury is ready, I hit that and watch the fireworks. Blow off my AOEs while I am swinging and add in a nice scythe attack and all I see on the screen for a few seconds is damage numbers as the 8 guys promptly explode. Does not always work but since they are spamming abilities and I am in haste attack mode, and she adds a ton of damage with a Myst of 16 considering she hits every time a spell tries to go off. I want to try Balth like you were mentioning when I have the rest of the skills from your build. There are like 2 I think I can't get right now without hitting PvP, but I like the damage add to skills being used. Very sexy effects. And I have actually been in a 1v1 battle once where he used an ability 3 times and no one was attacking him but me as the heros and henchies were busy getting smeared elsewhere, and the spell/ability stopped 1/2 way 2 or of 3 times. It was mentioned that Lyssa does not stop abilities, and it could be some other factor interfeared, but it looked like I was stopping an occasional ability off of Lyssa's ability used damage add thing she does. Anyway I don't see them as all bad, just used the right one for the right scenario is all, and if it is an ugly avatar just don't bring him out to play. lol. Anyway I wanted to add my two cents. Cheers all.

LightningHell

LightningHell

(????????????)???

Join Date: Aug 2005

Hong Kong

Guildless

Mo/

IMO, Balthazar's most useless for the only reason that +Armor doesn't work that much except in the scenarios where it's near useless anyway, and +Speed, while very nice in chasing down foes, is inferior to Melandru's IMO because of the latter's ability to overextend with ease. Although speed is always nice.

7thPawn

Ascalonian Squire

Join Date: Jan 2007

I am probably missing something but You get 200 health. That's sexy. Immune to conditions, sexy, but does the 'earth damage' do anything else? And I don't understand what you mean with overextend, like a longer reach? Never noticed it.

Symbol

Jungle Guide

Join Date: Aug 2005

Quote:
Last time I checked Most people Only hit 1 person unless using an Aoe, and since not everyone is stupid enough to crowd into the derv your targeting 1 person, who in retrospect will target you back resulting in a 1 on 1 with the chance of one or both of you being healed being a monk where the situation is still 1 on 1 with support Are the people you play retarded? 1vs1 duels are rare outside of RA, and even then almost never happen because you switch targets to the person attacking you.

LightningHell

LightningHell

(????????????)???

Join Date: Aug 2005

Hong Kong

Guildless

Mo/

Quote:
Originally Posted by 7thPawn
I am probably missing something but You get 200 health. That's sexy. Immune to conditions, sexy, but does the 'earth damage' do anything else? And I don't understand what you mean with overextend, like a longer reach? Never noticed it.
200 health and immunity to condition is sexy indeed. The "Earth damage" means exactly that; in short, instead of being Physical damage it's Elemental damage. Overextension is basically when you, as a melee character, go (way) beyond the reach of your monks or any support available, possibly to finish off a character, or to apply pressure to opposing monks, or something else. It's usually very dangerous, but with 200 health you're less likely to be, so to say, spiked. Not really a spike, but it's still concentrated damage. :P

Quote:
Originally Posted by Kijik Oni Hanryuu
dude, lol +40 armor is aesthetic.. that +40 armor is incredibly useful tanking, reducing a normally 200 damage attack to a manageable 50 or 60 damage, also in a PvE group the +33% run is great for running away in CASE the rest of your party goes down, then you can get away and come back and rez to prevent a party wipe. No, 40 Armor will reduce damage from 200 to 100, exactly.

ss1986v2

ss1986v2

Wilds Pathfinder

Join Date: Apr 2006

Mo/

Quote:
Originally Posted by 7thPawn
I am probably missing something but You get 200 health. That's sexy. Immune to conditions, sexy, but does the 'earth damage' do anything else? And I don't understand what you mean with overextend, like a longer reach? Never noticed it. overextend, as in stretching your range of attack outside your normal range. as a melee char, you usually dont stray too far from the area your monk can heal. if you get lost in the enemys backline for too long away from your monks, you will get put down pretty quick. but with the health bonus and the immune to conditions (dont have to worry about deep wound or condition degen), you can stretch further into the enemys ranks and stay there longer, allowing you to get to those squishie targets that you love to bash so much.

*damn, lightninghell beat me to it...*

Cebe

Cebe

The 5th Celestial Boss

Join Date: Jul 2006

Inverness, Scotland

The Cult of Scaro [WHO]

E/

Surely it entirely depends where you're playing. Yesterday I did Aborstone and Avatar of Melandru PWND!

You can walk over wardens traps and not even flinch!

So not sure if I could rank their usefulness...

I try not to be drawn in too much by the avatars...they always seemed a bit "gimmicky". I use them when they look like they're going to be useful...otherwise I make use of another, usually more useful, elite.

Thom Bangalter

Thom Bangalter

Grindin'

Join Date: Dec 2005

MO

E/Mo

Lately, our guild has been running two melandru's and a grenth, they're both awesome, but grenth is hands down the best, the melandrus are there simply to stop getting raped by blinding surge.

Balthazar's is sexy as hell in pve though. My dervish hero uses it.

CagedinSanity

CagedinSanity

Wilds Pathfinder

Join Date: Jul 2006

Away from you.

W/

I have just recently capped all but Dwayna, here's MY take
(Please note I am doing PvE most of the time)

On balthazar:
Can be useful in PvP, I've seen it work. I have seena very fast and high damage tank dervish in an AB once, he was difficult to take down and my team decreed that we should avoid him (didn't see him for the rest of the AB anyway. good thing, too.)
In PvE, it's good if you have no other elite alternatives. I would suggest Melandru over balthazar because the +200health can help negate the extra damage you'd get without the +40 armor.
It's a neat thing to have in other campaigns when fighting undead, too. Lions Arch, anyone?

I was very proud when i got balthazar, not because it was the most perfect elite, but because it's the hardest one to cap (had to get a guildie and his son to help.) The other three I just henched. The effort put into capping this elite is a wonderous thing indeed. I say go get it, just to have it available but there are better alternatives. (And if you're one of those guys who are like "haha balth wux ez, nub" Then you are a stuffed up wackjob who needs to shut the hell up.)

On Melandru:
Even though grenth was my first cap, I'd say this one has been the most used by me so far. +200 hit points + vital boon (80 for me right now) = An extreme health bonus that could bring you up to 800 or so health. And I'm sure there are more health boosting skills I don't know about yet.
Oh, lets not forget the immunity to conditions. Most of them I just live with (most only last a few seconds.) The only two i worry about is disease and blind, and that worry is gone with melandru. I love this skill. (the 25e cost is bad, if I die once i get to 24 energy which is.. bad. Not that it matters in AB anyway, haha!)

On Grenth:
Personally, on PvE, the enchantment killing really isn't that serious at all. Neither does the cold damage, really. (Can you imagine the uselessness against a select few rangers?)
This is my least favorite, but I'm pretty dang sure it'd be awesome in AB or something.

On Lyssa:
My most recently capped one, and will be the one I use most often now (Though I may find myself using melandru just as much. I wish i could equip them both
I love how it does +41 damage while they're activating ANY skill, instead of just an attack skill or spell. ANYTHING.
The +10 energy is underrated, methinks. It's a lot more useful than it sounds if you're thinking "only 10? why not 15 or 20?" No. 10 is nice.
Personally I could really use the damage buff so that's why I'm going to be using it.

On dwayne:
I'll have to get back to you on that, I'm not at the dejarin estate yet.

ensoriki

ensoriki

Forge Runner

Join Date: Aug 2006

Canada bro.

A/D

Balthazars useless because any of the forms will get him....except MAYBE for grenth but even then I think grenth would win

Lyssa vs Balthazar... Even if it was 4 vs 4 1 sides all balth 1s all Lyssa

Your going to activate skills any skill...and when you Do lyssas gonna hurt you
And if the lyssas have a enchant removal casting an enchant is a waste of time
Balth vs melandru: wont die if you spike youll get deep wounded....your gonna die first
Balth vs Dwayna: Will heal every damn second -_- T_T
Balth vs grenth: No enchants to protect you

Balth vs Shadow form: Ha lol Shadowform pwns you

Balth vs a monk: A monk wont be attacking you and since your focused more on Speed and armor Ergo why your using Balth....your not exactly Super spiker

Solus_the_Deadly

Solus_the_Deadly

Frost Gate Guardian

Join Date: Dec 2006

Pop

E/

People seem to really dislike bathalzar form, when 40+ armor is ALOT of armor.
Bathalzar Dervish can charge into battle and completey wipe out any Minion Master or Ritlust you met in Pvp.

Not to mention its great use for Pve. You become a Very pwoerful tank, extremly fast and dealing holy dmg, you encounter quite a few units who take double damage from this.

People must remember having a Massive armor and speed boost which can last over 70 seconds is a huge bonus and should not be over looked.

ubermancer

ubermancer

Jungle Guide

Join Date: Jul 2005

******************* Refuge From Exile [RFE]

Yeah but +40 armor does what for you exactly? Brings you up to Warrior level? (who are not unkillable...)

Melandru's is better for tanking IMO. No deep wound, no blind, no cripple, no weakness, and +200 health? HELL YES.

I say Balthazar needs an IAS too.

That said, Lyssa and Grenth are of course leet. Dwayna... dunno, could be cool, just never had a reason to try it.

Kit Engel

Frost Gate Guardian

Join Date: Apr 2006

Lords of the Sacred Chao

E/Me

Balthazar doesn't bring anything that other classes can't do really well... why not just take a warrior? With flail/rush you can have an IAS and movement speed pretty much whenever you need it.

Melandru and Grenth are tied for most useful, with Dwayna coming in a close second (really good, but only against hex-heavy areas... minor hexing a decent monk can easily deal with). Lyssa is nice but a bit too conditional for general use.

Ensign

Ensign

Just Plain Fluffy

Join Date: Dec 2004

Berkeley, CA

Idiot Savants

Grenth is the most dangerous in slugfests, as he gets to rip off your prot and lets your other physicals pound on a guy full-force.

Melandru is the most dangerous for executing tactics - it is virtually impossible to spike down, and very difficult to stop in small fights (where conditions dominate), making it an ideal character to threaten with on a split.

Of the remaining ones, Lyssa is the most dangerous, the extra damage from that skill hits *hard*. Dwayna is good in some matchups (hex immunity), but completely worthless in others, and it doesn't really enable any new tactics. Balthazar is just weak, the speed boost is easily duplicated (better!) by other skills, and +armor isn't worth spending your elite on. It's a cute PvE skill but nothing more.

Peace,
-CxE

Solus_the_Deadly

Solus_the_Deadly

Frost Gate Guardian

Join Date: Dec 2006

Pop

E/

These are my thoughts on the elites..


Remember Pve is Over half the game which Bathalzar form excels in. Only a few skills let you hit Holy damage, none for over 20+ seconds though. Same goes for +40armor and speed boost. 33% is the speed second largest speed boost in the game(only behind the 50% for 3 seconds from dash), and for second In pve is incrediable. Bathalzar is a wonderful running/tanking/undead slayer Form. I ask the people who has already insulted this wonderful elite, Have you ever used it? Bathazlar is great for the sitution when you know what your up against (example Undead). Acyolte Of Bathazlar can wipe out a full party of 8 easily for a reason.


It's not hard to see that Melandru is the most powerful Form byfar. It gives acces to weary strike without the drawback, which is almost more powerful than Eviscerate and ofcourse, the only skill that gives immniuty to conditions.
You can combine Victorius + Chilling + Weary strike here for Massive Damage spikes.

O yeh, to those who think Grenths is the best form, ever tried rending sweep + hexed. Much better than a elite..

Lyssa is great against casters, and the elite boost helps to spam attack skills. Other than that theres not much use for it.

Dwyanas is just awesome with self heal and hex removal, but a healer in a party would work better.