Lol Caster Shields

Arrogance prevails though and the black-dyed FoW, chaos-ninja monks can't possibly remove their purple shiney shield of doom at the risk of looking cheap.

Oh, god. It's not just me, then. I am so damn sick of seeing the Black Chaos Ninja army. It doesn't even look *nice* o.O

(and before you bitch, I do have FoW on my monk... it's just not dyed to make me appear to be missing my limbs in a black hole of suck).

Seems I've hurt alot of people feelings. But Once again I'll degrade your point to make my own

When there are things attack your group, Thats when you need to be healing. So the shield is useless, since everytime you're getting hit, you should be healing, not on the defensive.

Please Stop crying, I didn't mean to hurt your feelings Guild Guru

For most parts of PvE I use a 40/40 set or a +5e/20% enchants axe with a 20/20 offhand.

I also spend 99% of the time in PvP monking with my axe/shield

That has nothing to do with the weapon set, it has to do with the Leeroy warrior, or a monk who has fallen asleep/gone brain dead.

Also, defensive sets aren't always for showing off how rich you are, a lot of shields can look good without being expensive.

Edit: You CAN use skills on your defensive set. If you need more energy, change sets. It isn't brain surgery.

Amusing thread. If mixing in some F1-F4 with the asdw is too tough to handle, perhaps a slower paced game is in order (solitaire?). PvE is easy enough as it is, so if people want to mix it up and try to make themselves better players, good for them. I tend to be too lazy to bother in PvE. If henchies can get by with half a skill bar, I can get by without a shield.

hymmm I don't know about all the other monks and their experiences but from me playing DoA, and I have done quite a bit of runs. Just because your team is taking damage doesn't mean you can heal and stand their (btw I do this in HM where monsters will chase you down).

And to be totally honest, (I don't know if this is possible) but i find alot of fail ursans. So in theory (even in NM) the ursan should take all the damage and the monks take nothing but in truth alot of ursan are bad at calling key targets, chaining KD's, making a simple freakin wall. Attacking a target with SV and then wondering why your nrg is gone and you dropped from ursan. Or after you drop from ursan you stand their and cast Summon Ruby Djinn.... while theirs an aggro of Su's (who can invoke for over 480 on ursans).

And as for preprotting as some of the others have posted, try to take a prot skill on a HB bar and watch your whole team rage and call you a noob no matter how well you preprot, watch gales, watch warrior/derv trains etc. When i first started doA i took a hybrid heal bar with PS as my only form of prot and mainly because of city and foundry and so many teams just kick you. I pvp alot and do high lvl PvE with guildies mostly but seriously, in all of PvE you dont need a shield cuz you can kite pve monster with the quickness. Dont we all have 25% perma boost? cons = teh haxors. But with that said I still take shield sets +10 v piercing , +10 v demons, +10 v fire as well as low energy sets and 40/40 healing sets.

As for energy it also depends on the monks your coupled with, some monks just spam Heal Party all day long and run out of energy. I usually dont have any energy issue's and can stay in my shield set provided the other monk is decent (thas right monk not monks). Even moreso if it's a guildie we can chain seeds and everyone knows a good seed of life covered with Patient spirit so they can't rip the seed right away equals forever heals. Chain 2 and you get 12seconds of standing their not healing which equals 12 seconds of energy regain. Also if you other monk and/or monks have really bad positioning you'll find yourself spending more energy healing the monk because of his inability to kite. It makes me so mad to see a monk getting beat on to the point where I have to waste 5 energy or even 10 nrg to heal him...

but yea, ursans fail, monks fail, pve with guildies, pvp with guildies don't give yourself a headache.

I thought the defensive set was the standard set. Then you exchange for emergencies/enchants.

You'll see, good monks aren't stupid enough to run out of energy. Much less in PvE, where all scrimmages last, what, 1 minute? If you burn 35 energy with 2-3 monks in 1 minute, then you're either outhealing, or your team sucks. Or both.

And who's crying? You asked a question, people answered it.

Looking l33t is all that matters, especially in PVE.

When your team is getting hit, use your 40/40 set. You will be casting. When you are being hit, swap to your shield set. You should be kiting anyway, so you won't be casting. That extra armour will do wonders.

A: It's called weapon switching.

B: You can cast in the defensive set if you want, it's not like enemies in PvE are going to interrupt you 100% of the time on 3/4's and one second casts.

The point is that if you're good at energy management and have a good timing of GoLe and seed of life with the situation at hand, you can heal with a shield without probs, +10 energy with cons. And you have other sets to switch to just in case. The +16 armor is a bonus for such a monk.

I often just stand there with my shield up while 2 deamons got through the wall and hit on me, while I keep healing. It draws the attention away from the other monks who will seed me (I know exactly when that seed wears off) and the ursans can quickly finish the first line. If done, I'll move forward behind the ursans, so they can finish them off fast.

Energy denial is also another reason- switch to a higher energy set to cast then hide 20 energy that cant get stolen if somebody burns you.

You should be thanking the monk that uses a shield, for having an extra reserve just for you when you tank ahead. When I played caster rit I went three sets: -5 energy axe and a shield, normal wand and focus with some energy buffs (+5 above 50, etc) and a staff with +15 -1.

Thank that monk, not insult him. He's played longer and more serious than you ever will, and all you can do is hate?

The only thing I'm offended by is your - how would be a nice way to put it? - lack of desire to try and play/understand the game well? You might feel all hardass about "degrading the points of others to make your own" but I feel like that tactic might only work if you had something intelligent to say.

This'll help your argument: stop making sweeping generalizations; several monks choose functionality in defensive sets over epeen, don't play the game so stupid; even +8 armor is beneficial, get over yourself; 95% of guru is only marginally better than the average PuG they whine about that doesn't visit these forums.

Due to your heavy whining, you must have a thorough understanding about monk - you really do carry on like you're an expert in the matter, so please enlighten myself and other monks out there as to do the job. I apologize profusely for wasting time on my defensive set when I could spending time on an enchanting set for my HB bar... or a 40/40 set when cons are up! Too many people complain on guru without giving us solutions - so I invite you to give us your logical solution.

You missed what most people seemed to be saying, and for that, the joke is on you. Of course 40/40 sets are great, enchanting ones, too, high swaps, etc., but so are defensive sets. Do you know that not every monk needs to heal with an energy bank of 40-50 energy? And that maybe because of that they are better suited to fit in some extra defense? The whole point of swapping weapons is to fully tap into the potential of whatever facet of monking you most urgently need.

Set 1: Shield set - 35 energy
Set 2: Efficiency set 1 -42 energy, usually 40/40 for my main skills
Set 3: Efficiency set 2 - 40 energy, often a 40/20/20 staff, but 20%/+1 mods or a second 40/40 set can go here.
Set 4: Emergency set, dual +15e/-1 regen mods.

If I'm being beat on, I tend to stay in the shield set. It's a free +23 armor (I use a +5 armor sword because I'm sexy).

If I'm not being beat on, I tend to stay in sets 2 and 3, switching between the as needed.

If I'm in trouble, I switch to the +30e set to cast, then switch back as quickly as possible to minimize the regen hit.

The 40/40 sets aren't really there to give you more energy over the shield set, +7 isn't that much in the grand scheme of things.

The net result is that I have a constant 93 AL (+10 insignias, +8 shield, +10 inscription, +5 sword), 40% chance of HCT on almost everything, 40% HSR on almost everything, 20% longer enchants, a slight attribute point bonus to long-term skills, and 72 max energy. It's worth it.

thats really hawt.

/highfive

/thread

A shield set is only doing something if you're being hit. You should be casting in another set otherwise.

that block everyone else quoted +1.

@OP
as a monk, i direly hope you do not try to play a monk.

also, by your 18 armor = -3dmg statement, obviously we shouldnt be letting caster classes ursan because 2 more armor means maybe -4 damage. ohnoestheylldieeeee... wait a minute...

(learn what armor does please)

just cause you're in a defensive set doesn't mean you can't cast... like you said though, shield sets in PvE make little-to-no difference in most circumstances, and really this is the same with a standard staff/wand and focus set. If your team is dropping, it's cause you have terrible monks, not because they're in the wrong weapon set.

I'll give an example of when a shield set in PvE is worth while though. Lets take for instance, HM FoW, no consumables. In the griffon forest, a caster not using a shield will be hit for somewhere around 190 damage by chain lightning. using a shield+10AL vs lightning will reduce the damage to around 120. This also goes for using a +10AL vs fire shield in the burning forest, but you get the idea

As others have said, casting on shield sets does a lot for a monk. Casting on a shield set lets you reserve energy for deadly spikes. It also lets you hide energy from those e-burners. Also, casting on a shield set is totally fine because its not like you are going to be interrupted 24/7. Imho i only use my 40/40 when im getting locked on my interrupt rangers.

According to this formula, you take 73.20% of the damage you would have taken as a 60 armor target at 78 armor (or 26.80% less damage). A single hit that does 50 damage to a 60 armor target would only do 37 to a 78 armor target. I would say that is very useful. The lower the armor that the character has, the more valuable the extra armor from the weapon set becomes. If you are getting hit, you can prevent a lot of damage without even casting a spell by switching to your shield.

You should be on your shield set unless you have to cast, in which case you switch to one of your weapon sets. If you are not switching from your shield set, then you are not doing yourself or your teammates any favors. The only time you shouldn't weapon switch is if you are taking damage, in which case you should remain in your shield set.

I monk with a +5e +30HP sword and +10AL vs. Demons +30HP shield set in DoA, for groups that aren't made of suck and red bar fail. I rarely take damage, and don't run out of energy. Swapping weapon sets in PvE is simply there for showing off my superior ePeen given to me by my vast collections of shields and caster martial weapons that I obtained by 55ing and using other such cheap tactics to murder millions of monsters in mere minutes thanks to the fact that the AI is all to willing to throw itself at a smiter.

Nothing wrong with Monking in a shield set constantly in PvE. L2Prot and nobody will give a damn or know the difference.

I agree. Imo protting is surpasses powerhealing in many ways.

Well maybe you can explain why Warriors take any damage at all then =P

You know this is a game ? I can't believe you just wrote that much.. I read the first.. 2 lines and decided to reply, because Im not wasting my time reading that all. My lack of desire to learn how to play the game, Lol. Aspire to spend 17 hours < on the computer per day please.

it was 4 paragraphs...

also, if you have a question/problem about something, that's fine. But don't come to an elite GW forum, make an argument about something and then respond to good replys by talking down to people and making more shitty arguments.

I agree with the second part of that, but the first doesn't really make much sense. If there isn't any e-denial and your not being hit, you are only hiding the energy from yourself and losing out on a benefits of 1/2 cast/recharge times. A quick cast, or even a quick recharge, might be the difference between saving someone or being just a hair too late. Not that its something that is going to happen often, but why take that little edge away when you don't need to?

The only reason i use my caster shield in PvE is because it has a +1 healing prayers 20% and + 16 armour with req9 so in my case it would be common sence to take it since i normally run 4 weapon sets on my monk...
IMO i think a caster shield if used right can be usefull in PvE but isn't needed a staff is the best option.

This is why I like Riverside.

Anyways, as the OP said, the question was answered. No point in keeping this derailing thread open.