Poor Low Level Adventuring

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_Guile
Posts: 3
Joined: Fri Aug 28, 2020 9:53 am

Poor Low Level Adventuring

Post by _Guile »

I started a new Dwarven Monk, went to the dwarven mine area, none of the gear provided was appropriate or beneficial to me, I signed up with the sergeant to go clean out the "Front Gate" which turned out to be "The Dwarven Mine" area...

Then of course I went up to one of these acid spitting beetles and it owned my quite quickly in a few seconds...

I'm usually not one to complain much, but I actually came here & registered just to tell you that, you need to fix some things...

AC 14 with 8 STR (-1 Dmg) & no weapon finesse feat is a huge disadvantage for a starting character...
(Basically I couldn't hit the beetle at all in 3 rounds, but it had no problem destroying me)

If you want to make your module more enjoyable for newcomers, please don't make us crawl 3 huge maps just to go on a beetle hunting adventure that kills us and then we lose are starting gold because we died in your rather lame / so called "Adventure".

Put some real starting gear in there, you know like potions & +1 OTHER ITEMS BESIDES ARMOR & WEAPONS, and put some low level monsters in there that do not quickly own lower level characters.

What you have isn't a challenge, it's just poorly designed.

I was so put off, I just logged out.

Of course, you don't have to heed my advice, but you also have some spelling errors & conversational dialogue errors, and I know it's probably been ages since anyone of the "Older players" who can probably transfer gear, has actually started a low level dwarven monk and went adventuring, but don't just take my word for it, try it yourselves!

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Bargeld
Site Admin
Posts: 90
Joined: Wed Jul 01, 2020 11:29 am

Re: Poor Low Level Adventuring

Post by Bargeld »

Did you try a bow or sling? You can get mundane (cheap) versions in your faction starting room from a vendor, then buy ammo from a shop for cheap.

Appreciate the feedback, but like many games, a little bit of knowledge early on goes a long way.

The second toon you start will be easier than the first etc. as you climb that learning curve early.

It also sounds like your starting stats and class choice have put you on the more challenging side of the spectrum. Without more info about your stats it's hard to make other recommendations, but as a new player, hopefully you can understand that there may be workarounds and suggestions to making your initial leveling easier.

This server is not meant to be a walk through a park. There are difficult creatures all over the realm and pvp can occur in 99.9% of the areas, without level restriction. Expect to die. Expect to get killed. Not every game is suited for every player, but if you enjoy overcoming challenges and eventually vanquishing your foes, then you should be able to get a lot of enjoyment out of NS4.

Also, there is a chest in the central city of Avendell, available to all, that provides for gear transfers.

In the faction cities, guild halls have this ability as well, providing incentive to join/start a guild.

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frogofpeace
Posts: 34
Joined: Sat Jul 04, 2020 12:23 pm

Re: Poor Low Level Adventuring

Post by frogofpeace »

It is tough at L1, especially for a new player, and you're correct that there are a lot of veterans playing. I hope you try again, because it's a great server, just not story-driven, and a lot of effort has gone into the move to EE.

There was a conversation on Discord the last couple days about the locations of starter gear. It's pretty spread out - there is a quartermaster in the start area immediately after you join your faction, who sells mundane items; shops in the faction city centers that sell better gear (including for L1, although you won't be able to afford much with the starter funds provided; have to kill some rats to get more gold); and another guy called Elvin, usually outside where the shops are who sells cure wounds pots, healing kits, and other sundries. Pretty complicated, but I think designed so that you can explore.

Maybe the new player guide can be updated with some of this - hate to spoil too much, but maybe even broad hints like "Summon Creature spells are great for starting out, and get progressively better as you level." or "If you're a cleric with Str 8 and Dex 12, maybe a morningstar isn't your choice of weapon - try ranged for a while."

nagaguard
Posts: 2
Joined: Sat Aug 29, 2020 1:12 pm

Re: Poor Low Level Adventuring

Post by nagaguard »

Echoing Frog, this is a great server and loads of fun. Some builds are a bit hard to start off (level 1 sucks in general, but even more so for certain starting rolls).

Please do try again. There are some good starter builds posted in the old forums that still work for EE (https://ns4ee.com/forum_archive/viewtop ... 1066c89914).

I hope you give it another shot. Having a tough starting roll can be attempted after you have some experience about how to navigate your starting area and jobs.

_Guile
Posts: 3
Joined: Fri Aug 28, 2020 9:53 am

Re: Poor Low Level Adventuring

Post by _Guile »

This server is not meant to be a walk through a park.
I doubt you'll get serious (Read Good) players with such a crummy starting adventure / faction area with huge maps and no way to do anything other than crawl multiple maps to a place where you will die A LOT with crummy base gear and no freaking heals or healing kits to help you.

Cheers, but I'm moving on.

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frogofpeace
Posts: 34
Joined: Sat Jul 04, 2020 12:23 pm

Re: Poor Low Level Adventuring

Post by frogofpeace »

Yeah, I punted on one of the Nordock servers (I think - long time ago) because you could only rest in campsites, having to carry around rations or camping gear, or some such nonsense. I guess this is similar. I feel your pain. I'm sorry it wasn't your cup of tea. Not sure where a monk with low str and no finesse is going to have an easier time, though; I think I'd use the advice above for such a build pretty much anywhere.

For the record, you can buy heal kits and pots before yo umove into adventure areas, just takes some looking to find out where. Maybe add a few heal kits to the starter gear when the toon logs in? I don't think I'd start adding +1 wearables willy nilly, though (I realize that's not a risk :P)

Thoth
Posts: 2
Joined: Wed Sep 02, 2020 9:21 am

Re: Poor Low Level Adventuring

Post by Thoth »

I thought I would write this for those who read the original post and so as to not be discouraged.

As someone who has made plenty of characters, at low-levels the main factors for starting out:

1) if you have dex 12+ purchase a standard sling and 1 box of 99 bullets (standard or iron) - you can do so from starting quartermaster like characters near where you spawn.

2) if dex-based - pick up tailored robes/cloth armor and pick up ones that have 5% slash resist (this will save you from rat damage). If str-based pick up mundane plate for the high AC.

3) if you can use a shield, purchase a small masterwork iron mesh (pierce) or masterwork iron reinforced (slash) resist shield. Have different damage types i.e. armor slash w/ shield pierce or bludgeon. Go sword and board for first two levels before switching to a two-handed weapon if that's the build you've chosen.

Most starting areas the monsters do slash or pierce damage. For example In Melencia (The Circle) the goblin slingers do bludgeon and also have the Booger bullets that do 1 acid damage. So take them out first from range. Take out chickens at range as they do more than 1 damage. I've found if my screen lags a little there's a hidden monster usually a dire rat. Try to keep moving so you're not flat-footed and move close to an exit point just in case the battle goes bad and keep that trigger finger on the heal kit. Also, if you can resist the urge to respawn, if your constitution is reasonable, you can heal up while on the ground. Just hope your attacker has moved off enough to use that heal kit. Drinking a potion would generate and Attack of Opportunity and send you back into a dirt-nap.

4. If a spellcaster - Summon I is your friend and conjuration focus feats will buff your summons as you level.

5. If a wizard - pick up Shelgarn's Persistent Blade at level 1 as it is Immune to crits, sneak damage and mind-affecting spells and has decent damage plus later you can cast flame weapon (2nd lvl spell) on it for some extra damage. Rangers and Druids should cast Magic Fang (level 1) for some extra damage for their summons.

6. Pick up at least 10 Healing kits +1, those with more strength pick up 20.

7. Pick up a mundane wpn or if you can squeeze it in a small masterwork iron weapon like a club, dagger or light hammer to start especially if you have strength 12+.

8. Range attack (spells or sling) for the first 2-3 levels and then switch to melee weapon as they get closer. If a spellcaster, pick up Endure Elements to prevent damage from goblin slingers, beetles, low-level spells. You can shoot at targets like beetles at long-range and can get a number of shots in and they may not notice you. Just make sure to move in a little when they show up as near-dead to collect the xp.

9. Wpn finesse at level 3 if dex-based and a non-fighter class will obviously help in melee.

10. Rest often. Kill a few monsters and then rest / shard recall back to town - upgrade gear, get healing kits +1 and milky white potions (cure light wounds but way more expensive). I prefer healing kits because you can also use on your summons if not a healing class (cleric, druid etc) and they won't generate attacks of opportunity.


There's no perma-gear like what some other servers may have and as such suits different play styles. Plenty of areas to discover, you can craft your own gear, find unique items, farm for items to get gear for other characters etc. Party up to be sociable or solo a number of areas to test your build. PVP and relic raid to pick up xp-bonuses for your faction. It's balanced. To sum up the server is fine-tuned, quite balanced and rewarding.

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frogofpeace
Posts: 34
Joined: Sat Jul 04, 2020 12:23 pm

Re: Poor Low Level Adventuring

Post by frogofpeace »

Thoth wrote: Wed Sep 02, 2020 10:28 am 8. Range attack (spells or sling) for the first 2-3 levels and then switch to melee weapon as they get closer. If a spellcaster, pick up Endure Elements to prevent damage from goblin slingers, beetles, low-level spells. You can shoot at targets like beetles at long-range and can get a number of shots in and they may not notice you. Just make sure to move in a little when they show up as near-dead to collect the xp.
Or heavy crossbow

Midian
Posts: 5
Joined: Sat Sep 12, 2020 5:54 pm

Re: Poor Low Level Adventuring

Post by Midian »

I'd just like to add that at level 1, yes things can be difficult, but my Ranger has had zero issues. Once you find the proper vendors/shops/crafting stations it becomes fairly easy. I'm pushing my way through to level 10 almost!

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frogofpeace
Posts: 34
Joined: Sat Jul 04, 2020 12:23 pm

Re: Poor Low Level Adventuring

Post by frogofpeace »

Sweet!

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