starting a fresh protranser

[Darkly]

i've recently decided to make a new alt, hes a cast protranser level 1 and only lvl 16.

from people who have protransers, which weapons should i start levelling up first?

i was thinking stick to guns first because im quite weak at the moment

finally, is being a protranser as fun as it looks? thats the main reason i made one because i like the versitility of the class.

ps. any other advice, i have read the faq but it was a little dated, as missions like HSM will make it very quick for me to level up.

thanks.

[AC9breaker]

For now stick with Shotguns, Bows, Handgun and Saber combo. Sword with Tornado Break for a bit of self defense at close combat with multiple targets.

For Bows I would recommend Virus and Freeze. You can keep bow on your palette and switch to apply SE's. Freeze and Virus work well together. Shotgun, I would recommend Lightning, and another element, you think you'll be using a lot. Lightning helps A LOT in soloing and in team play. Most of the creatures who you would want to paralyze are susceptible to being afflicted by the Shotgun SE and will jelp in keeping you alive those early 3 Job levels.
Handguns, most definetly Fire and another element you think you'll be using alot. Personally I would recommend Lightning again. Its such a useful SE and lasts a bit longer at SE3.

Of course you''ll want to get more bullets later, but I recommend these for starters. Once you've built these up to a good level then you should look into other PA you think you compliment your set-up. The hardest push is going to be 3 to 5. Once you finally hit Job level 5 you can have a lot more fun with the class and really consider doing melee damage.

As for you final question, I'm gonna have to say hell yes. Having so many options will usually keep you going back into your menu to switch out a weapon on your palette. You're going to be thinking a lot more on how to increase your output since we are a statistically inferior class in comparison to the jobs available. But in this game there is no one weapon that dominates all except for maybe Crossbow with Yak Banga. Each weapon has its uses and specialties, your gonna have to learn what suits what situation best and what you prefer personally. There is no set way to play Protranser. Some are more ranged oriented, others are more melee oriented. In the end you should just try to have as much fun with the class as possible. Usually in doing this you also accomplish the goal of being an effective and wanted member for a party.

[biggabertha]

The most used weapons I use in a team have got to be handguns, shotguns and longbows. Coincidentally, they happen to be useable from the basic RA or FO class right from the get go and since you're a Cast, you'll have no trouble equipping the good ones.

For PAs, it depends greatly on how much you want to be a Protranser. If you want to be JUST a Protranser for that character, you can get lots of PAs as opposed to getting just a few that you may deem necessary.

The idea I find behind being a Protranser is that their real value comes out in teams. You can support the Fortegunner by helping him or her pin down enemies if you both use Grenade Launchers, draw some enemy attention away from the more frail Fortegunners with your Laser Cannon then quickly switch to traps or pull out your Shotgun to apply negative status effects on them as well as dealing some good damage.

Or you can help out the Guntecher in the team by staying with him or her firing your Longbow, inflicting heavy status effects on dangerous enemies, use your handgun in your left hand to dance around enemies, picking off the ones high above you while you bring the full fury of a Saber Photon Art upon them that's in your right hand.

Or you can step up with the Fighgunner or Fortefighter while unleashing excellent support Photon Arts such as Bogga Zuppa to keep Kog Nadds, Polhavras and Drua Gohras on their side while they can deal their maximum potential damage with their desired weapon.

You can even support the Glass Cannons that are the Fortetechers who draw too much attention with their TECHNICs. Using Dus Robado or Tornado Break to quickly clear creatures away from them before picking them off with Dus Daggas or Spinning Break.

Duoing with a Wartecher will probably be the most fun though. The two classes cover for each other's weaknesses very well since one seems to be Party support and the other is Solo sufficient. Protransers can draw lots of attention and keep the enemy/enemies busy with full PA combos while Wartechers can increase damage output with buffs and debuffs without getting one hit killed like Guntechers or worse, Fortetechers. A Wartecher blasting through the Ra TECHNICs or even the Gi TECHNICs while you plug away with your Grenade Launcher or Laser Cannon can keep several enemies pinned down.

The most satisfaction I suppose, is when you learn how to use Axes. Sure, Anga Redda may be fun to use because of it's insane leveling speed but Anga Dugrega just feels so satisfying to use and just happens to be extremely powerful and useful. It's like a close range Grenade Launcher with a very satisfying last hit. If you've never used Axes before and Protranser is the first character job you pick one up, you'll wet yourself at the damage these things can do at maximum level.

Last note though, using traps is entirely up to you and you will find out things about them that if you were told about them, you wouldn't necessarily believe them. Try them out but don't feel obligated to use them. I've rarely had anyone thank me for using my class' specialty to help the team but hear thanks to the healer or the buffer or the Status Effect Lv. 4 inflicter.

<font size=-1>[ This Message was edited by: biggabertha on 2007-09-03 07:25 ]</font>


<font size=-1>[ This Message was edited by: biggabertha on 2007-09-03 14:40 ]</font>

[Darkly]

wow, thanks for the responses guys, im definately going to go out and get a shotgun and bow now, at first i was just using saber and pistols so i could keep mobile.

im glad fellow protransers find the class fun because i wanted a change of pace from my fortefighter, i like being the jack of all trades kind of class protranser feels like.

Finally could either of you tell me what your playstyle is? im just curious to see if people focus on melee over ranged for example, or a nice combination of both. Personally i can see myself being a ranged support that will melee when the time comes or enemies are disabled by SE's etc.

At biggabertha i totally agree, as my main is fighter i think durega is awesome, mainly because its more of a utility pa that controls the enemies better than redda, which from reading your posts seems is better suited to protranser anyway.

[biggabertha]

n.n

It's good to know that my experiences are useful to others. I rarely party with other Protransers but from what I've seen of them, they love using traps. Being on PS2/PC, I can see why. I never got a hold of such large sums of money but if I did have the money, yes, I would burn through it with a massive supply of G traps. So that'd be my playstyle if I had the money. SInce I don't, I have to make do with what I have.

My playstyle is more ranged based at the moment because I want to level all twenty six of my bullets to level thirty. I already have eight out of ten of my melee Arts to Level thirt so I rarely use them unless I have to (for example, in a team where enemies are HARD). However, I always carry two or three weapons of each different kind that a Protranser can use in case I need to switch roles mid-mission (like when the Fortegunner disconnects mid boss-fight or when the Fortefighter needs to duck out for dinner).

Hmm.. Didn't quite answer your question, I suppose my playstyle favours more meleeiing but there's always so many fighters in a team that I feel inhibited to use my own melee attacks unless they're very threatening (Kagajabari-or whatever it's called comes into mind) but things like Bil De Vears, Anga Redda takes them out very nicely.

Being a Protranser kind of feels like being water to your team. If the team's missing something, you can fill it in with melee, ranged, traps or an abundant supply of Sol or Star Atomizers. Being Protranser doesn't really make soloing easy but this is an online game where you're supposed to play in teams and Protranser REALLY is a team player. Take your time to duke things through and you'll polish your character into a superb ally. Maybe.

Kubara knock off weapons are your PA leveling friends since the majority of them have low requirements and an abundant supply of PP. Not always but most of them will carry you through.

[Darkly]

Yeah, i understand that traps are useful however, i think im going to only have them for back up situations as i wouldn't like spending so much money on them because after using them for a while i could have bought a shiny new bow etc. for the same price.

[panzer_unit]

Suggestions for bullets... if you want to cover all the elements as minimally as possible:
Bow: Dark + Light (SE4 to virus large monsters, long-range anti-caster SE)
Handgun: Fire + Earth (spammable fast-damage DOT, works on large monsters, spammable anti-caster SE)
Shotgun: Ice + Lightning (pest control)

I switch my Protranser between Fortefighter, Protranser, and Fortegunner... mostly using PT weapons, just with the addition of (twin) claw on one side and rifle. The main weakness of PT in my opinion is energy management, much more than attack power... even if you have a weapon that works like a "win" button it'll wear out really quickly, so it's really important to balance your workload between a lot of weapons. Normally I make sure to throw some burn/virus around and then busy myself with a melee weapon (using regular attacks and PA's together) or a shotgun.

[AC9breaker]

Its exactly as Jag said. The real problem with Protranser isn't our lowered stats but our PP managements. We have no kinds of PP discount nor do we have extra pp regain. So you really do have to spread your PP usage around to multiple weapons and assess which enemies on who to use you're traps on when soloing or in group play. In team play you really don't feel how bad Protransers PP management is, but it becomes pretty obvious in solo play.

As for what kind of PT player I am, I would have to say I'm more ranged oriented. I really enjoy applying SE's and I've always been more of Ranger type of person myself. I absolutely love bows, and I've leveled all currently obtainable Bows to 21 with some at 30 and others just as close.

[ShineOnline]

I'll agree that since ATA has the best initial growth rate at 10% per level, you're better off leaning heavily on ranged weapons for the 5 or so job levels. You'll want to start with bows for the extra ATP and the handgun/saber combos. Move to shotguns as your ATP increases. Once you reach job levels 4 or 5 (I think there's a 7% ATP increase at 5), spears and daggas become a staple of your arsenal.
IMO, PTs are the best DoT + melee in PSU.

One last thing... use regular virus traps!

[panzer_unit]

If you think about it, PT stat progression tells you what's what:
rank 1 - all stats blow - Bow, Saber, Knuckles (need the ATA). These are the bread and butter of SE and crowd control which is IMO the Protranser's main reason for getting melee weapons at all.
rank 6 - ATA max, low ATP still - All guns, A-rank sabers, B-rank on other melee. Advanced gunnery skills/equipment, Handgun & Saber lets you spend time in melee without giving up your guns... Yohmei and Tenora melee weapons are great for crowd control PA spam and spike-damage output respectively, but not ready as primary weapons due to heavy stat biases.
rank 10 - HP, ATP, DFP max - All weapons. Good HP and weapon/armor ranks finally let you make the full variety of melee weapons a part of your day-to-day business... don't take it as a sign to forget that you just spent 7 ranks mostly being a gunner.