i really need help--

how can i get prophecies skills like meteor shower in factions?
i dont have the first guild wars patch, only factions.. is that possible?

another thing.. what does this attribute mean:
12 + 1 + 3
what does the 2nd and 3rd number stand for?

you cant get meteor shower in factions unless you can get to lions arch to buy it.

and 12+1+3 means 12+1 from the headpiece of the armor +3 from a superior rune.

If it is a prophecies-only skill you must have prophies to get it, and acquire it in Tyria.

12 = attribute level
+1 = bonus from hat
+3 = bonus from rune (superior)
16 = total attribute level

1. You can't. Meteor Shower can only be used by people that own Prophecies, there is no way that you can get it without owning that expansion.

2. The 1 is for headgear. Since you can wear different types of headgear, you can get +1 depending on what attribute you want to put it into. This helps to seperate it from:

3. Runes. Minor, Major, and Superior Runes give attribute point bonuses to the attribute they are alligned in. So, this character would have a Superior Rune and a headgear that are in the same attribute to give a +4 bonus overall.

unfortunately, if you don't have prophecies, you wont be able to get any skills available only in prophecies.
12+1+3 is this: (example is fire attribute)
the 1 is the attribute you pick for your head piece, so if you get a fire aura, that is the +1. the +3 is rune of superior fire.

You cannot get Prophecies only skills without owning the Prophecies campaign (Though i'm no expert on Eles and dont know if Meteor Shower is core or not).

And those numbers stand for add ons, example : 12 ranks in Marksmanship + a +1 Archers Mask + a +3 Sup Marksmanship Rune.

but is it really good to buy superior runes with -75 health or something?
isnt hå important?
is it really worth it raising the attribute to 16 rather than only 13 or 14? will it do A LOT of difference?


and by the way, im a e/mo..
would the 55 build work with me if i use the same monk skills? and all the superior runes..?

In some situations....yes and in some no! It depends on what you are doing.
In some cases, having a superior rather than the minor rune can sometimes be the difference in life or death. The more attributes you have, the more powerful you are. This isn't to say that you go and stack your armor with all superior runes unless you are going specifically as a 55 or something (in that case, I would have an extra armor set for that), but some people offset the -75 health reduction with a Superior Vigor which gives +50. Superior Rune of Absorption is also a good superir rune that doesn't have a -75 health penalty. Some PvP players like to go all minors (not always though) to maximize health (which is very important...especially for a monk). In PvE, you are more concerned with damage, so as long as you have a solid build and group, sacraficing -75 health for the extra attribute isn't usually much of a concern. It really all depends on what you are trying to do which will reflect which runes you use.

- Aldoros of Faydark

Personally, I stay away from Superior Runes, the loss of health far outways the attribute point bonus, especially at high DP. Unless you are trying to reach the next critcal level such as 13 Critical Strikes for the +3 energy, I wouldn't mess with Superiors too much.

I tend to avoid the Superior runes until I've got at least a Major Vigor rune, too. That way, your total health loss is greatly reduced. Never use more than one Superior rune on your armor at a time!(unless you're doing something special like making a 55 Monk for farming)

For somme professions, having a superior rune is sometimes the best choice. a Minion Master must have at least a major rune altho the superior rune is way better, makes your minions worth making them.

I have a sup headset for each attribute type on all my chars for whatever build i'm using, negative health countered with sup vigour. If i get too much dp i equip a +60HP weap, a weap type i only use for this purpose. You could also carry runeless headsets to counter dp but that imho is a waste of storage, max 16 attribute makes a big difference in 90% of farming builds, especially if u need to spread your points around. You will get used to it in time with experience, no sup headset= weaker player than you should be. Use your head when fighting and some positional awareness and the little negative health shouldn't be a problem.

but what i am wondering about is if i could have a 55 monk build as an elementalist..! will it work then? would i be able to reduce the damage and stay longer alive even im an elementalist with 55 hp..?

There are 55 elmo builds out there, look in the Elementalist board, farming board or on guildwiki.

Elementalists can use other builds for farming though, generally centering around earth or as el/as with Shadow Form. You'll find all of those in the above mentioned places.