advice for melee oriented acrotechers

[CeasOne]

I just spent most of my morning lvlin buffs on my lvl 60human at(5) . I found that instead of going insane lvlin every buff to 31 I should concentrate on the few I need to maximize damage.

Heres a list of my buffs & debuffs: *I still need giresta i know =/*
shifta - Take it to 31 asap more atp=more dps and easier solo'in
deband - with some decent armor 21 is very nice lvl for now
zodial - using evp/def debuff alot helps. im content with 21 for now
retier - 21 helps to boost mst for when ur takin in ele. damage

jellen - having 21 deband & good armor 21 jellen is enough 4 me now
zalure - bringing this to 31 will increase your melee damage *im going to do this one in a few=)*
zoldeel - i dont miss much so 21 is fine for me on this skill for now

If you were wondering "Hey where can I waste hours of my life leveling buffs and debuffs (/sarcasm fast)"

Buffs- Hit Universe 1 or 2 and make your way to "the white beast c" look to join a party named "buffparty" or something to that nature. If one doesn't exist create one invite your PM & an online story mode npc . Clear to the end where there is a photon charger cube "make sure to hit the crystal on floor 3 so people joining won't see that they have to walk and decide to leave cause you are teh sux"

Debuffs - Head to linear line c-rank and look for a stomach shaped 1st room leading to the awesome train track room with 6x pannon spawn. I usually buy 10xphotonchargecosmo & reg ones as well so I dont have to leave the mission. Debuff to your heart's content.

Well I hope this helped some acrotechers out maybe even saved you some time. I'm going to finish getting my retier to 21 maybe get zalure to 31, but I'm really thinking about driving over to the mall with my trusty zanpachto and committing mass homicide by means of sword =)
-demii-

*credit for debuffs leveling info goes to a guide from psow's helpfully guide thread*
*credit for buffing advice came from my buddy on xbox360 server*

/edit you know what really helped me to level my buffs? a portable 7inch dvd player "so I could watch tv while buffing" and ofcorse my Hori Xbox360 TURBO CONTROLLER! =)

[Macras]

i find buff parties more often in parum east doing the mission "Mad Creatures." its also easier to get to.

[mvffin]

buffs are way more important than debuffs. time spent casting a debuff could have been spent casting something useful(damaging)

until debuffs are useful again, they will sit in my pm.

[Hiero_Glyph]

Here's my advice for a melee oriented Acrotecher: Pick another class that can actually melee.

[Talise]

Here's my advice for a melee oriented Acrotecher: Pick another class that can actually melee.

I agree....I played with one of these "melee" AT's that couldn't even heal himself to save his life, and Lvl 20 skill PA's? If you really insist though, the technics to have would be Megistar(but I'm impressed you actually did lvl your buffs like a real AT) and resta(on the same wand/mag) and Zalure, and if you feel like being more useful, giresta. Seriously, if you're melee, then just zalure and start PA spamming.

[mvffin]

or you could stop using zalure for instant improvement.

[Ffuzzy-Logik]

Here's my advice for a melee oriented Acrotecher: Pick another class that can actually melee.The focus of AT is undeniably support. But a party by no means requires constant support, so you might as well do something else other than Resta for the 5 minutes between each buffing session. And if you're going to do something, you might as well do damage. And if you're going to do damage, melee is going to do more than techs, nine times out of ten. Is this balanced? Is this "fair"? No, probably not, but that's the way it is. Unless you're a Newman, you'll be much more useful to the party spamming Hikai Shuha-zan and Vivi Danga rather than Diga and Foie.

It's the same argument for melee forces on PSO. No one with good knowledge of the game mechanics would deny that a FOmar was better off using melee than techs, and the same goes for most Acrotechers. However, if you wish to do your damage with techs, then more power to you, but don't speak ill of those who want to use melee.


Anyway, as an accomplished melee Beast Acrotecher (and melee FOmar in a previous lifetime), here's my advice:

Buffs: Get them to 21 at least. I personally haven't gotten them to 31 yet, and don't plan on doing so until we get the PA exp increase. However, I haven't once had anyone complain about them not being 31. Concerning actual buffing, do it at the beginning of the mission, and refresh them as soon as possible every time they run out. Buffing someone after a death is also a good habit to make. If people run from your buffs and make no effort to come back within range, then forget about them, they obviously don't care so neither should you. If they try to get back in range, though, be patient and give them their buffs.

Debuffs: Don't bother. Really, just don't. They are a waste of time and PP and have such a minor effect on battle statistics (when they actually stick) that they are totally not worth it. If you want to tag stuff, just attack it. Whips are great for tagging.

Healing: The most important job of all, at least in my opinion. Have a TCSM with Resta/Reverser in your left hand of every melee weapon on your palette (more on palette later), and don't be afraid to use them. I heal after pretty much every PA, or whenever I see someone take any significant damage (I do my best to keep everyone at 100% HP 100% of the time, even though I know this is not necessary, it's just a matter of pride in how I play my class), and I almost never have an issue with PP running out. Regarding Reverser, use it any time anyone has any SE (other than debuffs, fix those with buffs). You will find it very useful to get both Resta and Reverser to level 31, as they get much better range (and look awesome). Regarding Giresta, use it as a buff at the beginning of missions and before bosses/large spawns and the like. Please do not use Giresta for general healing purposes. While it's not nearly as slow as it used to be, Resta is undeniably faster, and even with a Har/Quick and AT speed, the timing can make a difference in a pinch. Also, Resta generally heals more HP and has better range. It also takes less PP. That's another reason to level Resta: as you level it, it gets better and takes less PP to use.


Melee: Hikai Shuha-zan is extremely good, even if you only use the first part. Vivi Danga is also extremely good. Both of these can rack up damage very quickly. I find the best daggers to use are Deva-zashis (silence can be useful on many enemies), and the best whip is generally Vish Adac (stun is always welcome). I use sabers on occasion with Spinning Strike just for fun, but daggers will rack up damage more quickly by spamming Hikai.

Ranged: Ranged ability is a must. Do not neglect bullets and guns, as it will cripple you against certain enemies and most bosses. Cards are very good and grossly underrated; they are your best means of damage against melee-resistant (but bullet-weak) enemies such as Jarbas and Tengohgs. Cards also level rather quickly. Good cards to get are S-Ranks (duh) or Card Regas, which is very strong. Another good ranged weapon (but generally weaker than cards) is twin handguns. These you will use on bosses. Ignore all the bullshit you hear about bows being better than twin handguns for bosses, as there is no way in hell this is remotely true. Anyway, twin handguns are good for almost all bosses and many other enemies. Good twin handguns are Arb Boa and Twin Ruby Bullet (with the latter being the best for AT). Single handgun you can pass on if you want. I use a Viper occasionally, but I rarely do more than break boxes with it.

Tech Damage: Don't ignore this. While melee is typically going to get better overall damage output, techs can be useful in many situations as well. I'll admit that I rarely use them, but that's more out of personal preference (I don't enjoy tech-spam). Depending on your race, techs will be the damage method of choice on certain enemies, like robots. Megid may also be useful, but I haven't leveled it enough to comment on it yet.

Palette: I find this general scheme to work very well (your mileage may vary):


Viper + melee weapon (either dagger or whip, occasionally saber, Viper is often replaced with a Resta/Reverser Dori)
Pushan (Resta/Reverser) + melee weapon (dagger or whip)
Pushan (Resta/Reverser) + melee weapon (dagger or whip)
Coni (Shifta/Zodial) + Cometarac (Deband/Retier)
Twin Ruby Bullet
Shi-kikami + Uransara (Giresta/Reverser)




Short Version: tl;dr

[Hiero_Glyph]

or you could stop using zalure for instant improvement.

Even a Beast AT can benefit from the added damage provided from Zalure. It's not like an AT is killing everything so fast that the debuff would be wasted due to everything falling over dead. They have some time to enjoy their debuff while they kill things unlike a real melee class. In a party using debuffs is pointless, but when playing solo it can help to add additional damage.

[Ffuzzy-Logik]

AT is about as far from a solo class as it gets, so uhhhhh....

If you wanna solo but still play kinda like AT, then use WT. That's about all WT is good for. :\

[Talise]

AT is about as far from a solo class as it gets, so uhhhhh....

If you wanna solo but still play kinda like AT, then use WT. That's about all WT is good for. :

BS AT's defense(considerable improvement over FT) and lvl 40 buffs and healin makes them one of the top solo classes(not saying best). Well I wouldn't say top, more like they're most suited for it. Btw, I'm a technic oriented AT(I do melee in the necessary situations though), so your liddle melee speech is blahhhhh, maybe you're just hating on technics. AT has excellent crowd control and this can do damage over time => than your melee that's hitting 3- mobs at a time(except whip). Points to you for recommending resta over giresta, giresta is reapplied like regular buffs and should you reapply giresta over some1 who has it already, they lose their health buffer.

[Hiero_Glyph]

In response to Ffuzzy-Logik's reply I wanted to clarify my point. As an AT a lot of your versatility depends upon your race. Some classes are more suited to dealing melee damage or ranged damage, while others are best at technic damage., and some fall right in the middle of all three. My problem comes in the length of a Just Attack PA. The whip is the worst culprit of this as the entire PA takes days to complete. The dagger PAs are alright but once you begin a PA and especially link to the second part you are unable to do anything else for another 2-3 seconds. In this time a lot can happen.

So what does this mean? Well, as you already stated the primary role of an AT is support. This includes using Resta and Reverser and Giresta/Buffs (please use Resta to heal and not Giresta, if I need to explain why you should not be an AT). I do like AT's that have access to Resta/Reverser on almost every slot as this is your primary technic but once you begin a skill PA you cannot simply cancel it and cast a heal. If a member of your party has a status effect and you cannot get to them quickly it can spell certain doom for them and really throw off the dynamic of your entire party.

Furthermore, if you are attacking an enemy directly (up close) you are more likely to take damage. An AT that needs to heal themself is a weakness to their team as they cannot run through the enemies to get to a teammate in need. So if you get hit for 50%+ of your health you need to heal immedaitely, but if a teammate is taking similar damage on the other side of an enemy now you have to take care of yourself before trying to run through the enemies again and sometimes this may mean switching weapons, finding cover or other problems in order to accomplish this task.

So when can an AT use melee? An AT is free to engage in direct combat at any time as long as it does not interfere with the primary classes from dealing their damage first. This normally means that an AT will attack any enemies that wander from the fight or attack an enemy from behing while it is fighting another memeber of your party. Any PA that has blowaway is worthless! This includes the second part of whip PAs, Rising Strike, Shunbu, etc. To gain maximum damage a Just Attack should be used but once again this involves an extra hit in order to begin your combo. The longer this combo requires the less useful an AT will be when they are needed most.

Typically I suggest using a handgun, twin handguns or machineguns and a single melee weapon so that you can keep your attack time to a minimum. Let's face it, a ranged weapon can stop firing at a seconds notice, while a melee weapon takes a lot longer to just stop using and in some cases leaves you very vulnerable if you stop at all. This type of requirement just makes using melee weapon a liability if used too often. It does have a purpose, but 2+ melee weapon on a pallet is a joke for an AT.

For anyone playing as a Beast AT, please go Wartecher if you plan on carrying 3 or more melee weapons. You will get a better weapon selection and level 30 skill PAs as well. Sure, the AT is versatile but in some ways a buff-only AT is almost as bad as a Beast FT or Newman FF. The key to an AT is doing almost anything at any time, limiting yourself to just a couple of areas is going to cause problems. My suggestion is to have 1 buff slot, 1 ranged slot w/ first-person view (handgun/t. handgun), 1 melee slot, 1-2 technic slots and the last can be almost anything. An AT needs to have offensive technics! They are just not reliant upon them like their FT comrades.

My setup is currently this:
madoog/wand (resta/reverser & 2 offensive technics)
madoog/wand (resta/reverser & 2 offensive technics)
madoog/wand (resta/reverser & 2 offensive technics)
twin handguns
madoog/melee weapon (giresta/zalure, although anything can replace zalure)
madoog/wand (all 4 buffs)

I have the option of replacing one of my madoog/wand slots with almost anything but like to have Megid/Ramegid, Diga/Nosdiga and Noszonde/Razonde or similarly paired technics depending on the elements of the area.

[Ffuzzy-Logik]

I do agree with your points, and any experienced AT will know better than to start a long PA during a dangerous spawn. But let's say a pack of six or seven Nava Luddas pop up. I mean, what the hell, they're freaking Nava Luddas, they're not a danger to anyone, so if I can get off an entire Vivi Danga combo in the middle of them, I'm going to. Now let's say four or five buffed Vanda Merhas pop up. Now is when I'm going to use fast PAs like Hikai, and even then I will spend most of my time healing or doing regular (non-PA) attacks so I can heal at a moment's notice.

It's hard to describe cut-and-dry rules for these things, but I agree with your point that relying on melee too much can prevent you from healing sufficiently. However, this is really where skill and experience come into play. If you use your discretion and make healing your number one priority, then you can really do both, depending on the situation.

Regarding the "go WT" comment, why? I played WT for a year, and I never enjoyed it much, but at the time there was no other option for melee/support. You see, I don't want melee with a side order of support, I want support with a side order of melee, and WT clearly is deficient in the support department. Furthermore, I'm very satisfied with AT's weapon selection (daggers are my favorite weapon), and I get to use the heavier weaponry on my other character, so I really have no reason to use WT.

[Hiero_Glyph]

Any class can attack against weaker enemies because the damage the enemies can inflict is minimal. What bothers me is when an AT always uses a whip PA in the middle of every battle regardless of the situation. I play with one and it drives me crazy. You are correct in that experience matter the most when playing an AT because with so many choices thre is a lot that they can do wrong.

In regards to the WT comment the ATP is really what makes or breaks a melee class. A male Beast WT has almost 200 more ATP than an AT at level 130. Even with buffs, these stats are minor (~30+% less) compared to a pure fighter class that pushes close to 2,000 ATP. Also note that buffs provide a +% based upon the player's base stats, so having a naturally high ATP matters more for Shifta than using a high ATP arm unit. Add to that the relatively weak Attack % PAs from an AT's weapons and the results are less than ideal. At least a WT has a higher base ATP and a good selection of melee weapons along with moderate support technics. I do understand what you mean when you never enjoyed playin a WT though, the class needs a more defined role in a party.

I am toying with the idea of using machineguns in limited cases just like I do with my twin handguns currently. That being said these are specific cases with limited use just like using a melee weapon. An experienced player can find a solution for the problem using whatever resources they have available and the AT excels at filling in the gaps for their party. The trick is to always remember that you play a support role first. Most Beast/Cast ATs seem to forget that aspect as they get too involved in their skill PAs; don't even get me started on nanoblasts and SUVs.

[Ffuzzy-Logik]

I agree that there are very many poor ATs, and Acrowhippers are a waste of party space. But you shouldn't judge the potential of the type based on how poorly some choose to play it.

Regarding nanoblasts, I very rarely use mine, and only when I'm with friends I can trust to use Stars and mates, and we're just doing something casually.

And I know all the figures for the ATP and crap, I just don't care about it. My beast dabbles in fF from time to time, so I know what it's capable of, but I'm not concerned with being a DPS-whore. If I really cared about stuff like that, I wouldn't play a Human PT.

[CeasOne]

Wow didnt expect such a response. For all you acrotecher melee haters , ITS A HYBRID CLASS PLAY IT THE WAY YOU WANT! =) Sure if you want true dps GO FORTEFIGHTER if you want tech damager GO FORTETECHER *got one* . For you guys whom are saying go wartecher ; no thanks been there tried that got the tshirt was super lame.

So much negative feed back about a class/build that can solo EZMODE , heal , buff , debuff and melee relatively well with 1 handed weapons.

I enjoy this build and class because it comes really close to one of my favorite PSO characters and thats a HUNEWEARL . The old schoolers should know what im talking about , if you dont go educate yourself

[Hiero_Glyph]

Just one additional point since CeasOne mentioned it briefly. If you are playing solo, by all means use tons of melee weapons as they can deal more DPS than technics currently. There is nothing wrong with having 4 or even 5 of your slots with melee weapons when you are playing by yourself.

The problem develops when you attempt this same technique in a party. An AT with multiple melee weapons in a party is like the fat kid playing kickball. Sure he gets to play but he is always too slow or not skilled enough to make a difference for the team. So if you use too many melee weapons in a party you will look silly when the FF, FG, AF, etc. all make your DPS look pathetic. Add to that the travel time to and from the enemies and by the time you get there everything will already be dead. Just focus on support and hit anything that wanders towards you; or you can wait for Jabroken and clean up the ones that don't die initially.

[CeasOne]

True true hiero, I'm usually playing solo40/60% of the time im playing my acrotecher. When solo'in i usually have the following pallet:
deva-zashi / dori *jellen/zalure*
Crimson / Viper
blackheart / Coni *zalure / zoldeel*
halp serafi Pegita *shifta/deband*
vish tien / 9* card *used for the damage over time photon arts*
magical want (resta/reverser) / shato *retier / zodial*

I'm still working out my final solo pallet , but im probably going to add some cards considering i have all the bullett skills to 30 on my fortetecher. Giresta is key once we get this fucking extention on mag *THANKS SONIC TEAM =)*

Playing at higher levels and in a party ofcorse I'll probably bank the mags & get some wands/cards . Use debuffs to leach xp and keep the party buffed and healed I mean face it anyone who knows how to play their class understands that no matter how you play this hybrid class its a SUPPORT character.

[redroses]

Just one additional point since CeasOne mentioned it briefly. If you are playing solo, by all means use tons of melee weapons as they can deal more DPS than technics currently. There is nothing wrong with having 4 or even 5 of your slots with melee weapons when you are playing by yourself.

The problem develops when you attempt this same technique in a party. An AT with multiple melee weapons in a party is like the fat kid playing kickball. Sure he gets to play but he is always too slow or not skilled enough to make a difference for the team. So if you use too many melee weapons in a party you will look silly when the FF, FG, AF, etc. all make your DPS look pathetic. Add to that the travel time to and from the enemies and by the time you get there everything will already be dead. Just focus on support and hit anything that wanders towards you; or you can wait for Jabroken and clean up the ones that don't die initially.

I noticed you meantioned DPS quite often. I am sure a lot of people aren't concerned about this(or will you switch from AcroTecher to Masterforce, as you mainly use TECHS, to get more DPS, or else you'll look silly when a MasterForce joins). It also seems to me, that you bash meele a lot, because you only(or almost only) use TECHs. Anyway, I do not care about DPS at all, if I would, I would have 4 male Beast ForteFighter or so. I do enough damage, especially with my buffs. I am also always capable to heal everybody.
And as I always say, party members shouldn't rely to much on an ArcoTecher, if they notice they aren't getting healed right away, than they should heal themselves. When I play on my AcroFighter I always play like that.
AcroTechers should use their meele (especially the one handed weapons, because you can stick a Madoog in the other, I am not so much for the meele that uses both hands, but if you can switch fast enough, ok) as it is helpful. For example, using Vish Adac against a group of Kakwane, or even against Komazli.

Also, again to the fact that you meantion AcroTechers should forget meele and use TECHs, not every AcroTecher is a newman. So TECHs are pretty useless if you aren't one. And if you are so concerned about DPS than I wouldn't suggest using TECHs if you aren't Newman.

[CeasOne]

It's funny how people complain and criticize about hybrid classes/builds. I really only party up with my friends on xbox360 friends list cause heading over and trying to find a group on universe one or two is ez but 99.9% of the time your going to get REALLY shitty players who will pop yang about how your not healing them every 10 seconds. Not to mention the same person bitching about the resta neglected to bring any mates/scapes LOL.

I can't imagine how it is on pc/ps2 if your not using some sort of voice client , granted if you know how to play and know your class you really shouldn't need one i mean cmon this game isnt that complicated.

Amai is right though if you group up with an AT and notice that they arn't healing your right away as you take damage I'de use a diamate and try to clock their reaction time to see if their going to switch wpn's and heal your ass.

My friends know how i play and i heal when its super nessecary *-40% health* I use to play a healer in some other mmo's so I have it drilled in my head "DONT OVERHEAL" haha.

If I end up grouping with people whom I'm not familer with It's ez to just tell them through the headset "yo im not going to heal you every 5 seconds unless your critical, dont like it sorry =)"

I guess the lesson from this rant is .... If sonic team changed resta to leach xp from all the mobs when you healed your party I bet you would have alot of healing whores in this game hehe.

[MoorePSO]

I enjoy this build and class because it comes really close to one of my favorite PSO characters and thats a HUNEWEARL . The old schoolers should know what im talking about , if you dont go educate yourself
Yay HUne's!

I play AcroTecher for much the same reason. Only, as an AT I'm not limited to looking like some fetish fantasy girl :)

I admit that I'm a newb. I only started PSU a couple of weeks before MA:G and thanks to MA:G I have a level 130 Male Cast, Level 20 AT.

For Skill PA's I have Visshi Gruda, Vivi Danga, Hishou Jinren-zan, Renkai Buyou-zan, Shunbu Shouren-zan, and Hikai Shuha-zan all maxed at level 20. I also have the bullets Twin Freeze at level 20 and Frozen Hit at level 14.

My Techs have been a bit slower to level. I have Giresta at 34, Resta at 25, Reverser at 25, and all four buffs at 24. For attack techs I am currently working on Megid, Rabarta, Rafoie, all at level 11, and Razonde, almost level 11.

I play with Support as my Primary Role, Melee as my Secondary Role, and Ranged/Tech damage as a Tertiary. I am not a hardcore DPS'r and don't care to play that way. Yet, I am reasonably able to solo most of the S and S2 missions that I've found without using more than four Scape Dolls on average.

My pallet is - Katsuno-zashi for 1v1 DPS primarily
Vish Adac / Dori for Crowd Control & Resta / Reverser
Twin Ruby Bullet for Ranged DPS
Tesbra / Dori for Megid / Rafoie (Tech DPS/Removal) & Resta / Reverser
Tesbra / Dori for Rabarta / Razonde (Tech SE) & Giresta / Reverser
Majimra / Shato for BuffsI use my whip primarily for crowd control and on monsters with multiple hit boxes. Laying down Stuns helps a lot.

I switch to the Twin Daggers to finish off single monsters, knock them down with the first half of my PA, or just want/need more damage against a single opponent than with the whip offers. But I'm never more than one B+RB/RT click away from a healing TCSM.

I rarely use the second half of my Skill PA's, and only when there is no risk of anyone dying because I'm stuck in a stylin' but far too long whip swirly thing.

I am considering Twin Mayalee to gain a bit more Ranged DPS, but I'm still a sucker for the Freeze effect.

In the end, though, It's my character and I'll play it the way I like. I don't feel the need to have a rainbow assortment of 45+%, +9 or greater weapons and armor. Fun is more important than statistics, IMHO.

[Hiero_Glyph]

I noticed you meantioned DPS quite often. I am sure a lot of people aren't concerned about this(or will you switch from AcroTecher to Masterforce, as you mainly use TECHS, to get more DPS, or else you'll look silly when a MasterForce joins). It also seems to me, that you bash meele a lot, because you only(or almost only) use TECHs. Anyway, I do not care about DPS at all, if I would, I would have 4 male Beast ForteFighter or so. I do enough damage, especially with my buffs. I am also always capable to heal everybody.
And as I always say, party members shouldn't rely to much on an ArcoTecher, if they notice they aren't getting healed right away, than they should heal themselves. When I play on my AcroFighter I always play like that.
AcroTechers should use their meele (especially the one handed weapons, because you can stick a Madoog in the other, I am not so much for the meele that uses both hands, but if you can switch fast enough, ok) as it is helpful. For example, using Vish Adac against a group of Kakwane, or even against Komazli.

Also, again to the fact that you meantion AcroTechers should forget meele and use TECHs, not every AcroTecher is a newman. So TECHs are pretty useless if you aren't one. And if you are so concerned about DPS than I wouldn't suggest using TECHs if you aren't Newman.

Please read the entire thread before commenting on a select reply I made. If you had read my previous entries you would realize that I rip on melee ATs because the skill PAs take forever to execute. Add to that a Just Attack combo and it takes even longer.

I have no problem if an AT uses melee in select situations and once again have already stated that experience matters the most in determining when to strike an enemy and when to stay away and use bullets/technics. Also remember that since support is your primary role where you fight on the battlefield is crucial for keeping everyone within your support radius. Having to chase a member of your party across the map is never fun. To engage in melee you need to be within range to strike the enemy, where a bullet/technic allows you to hold your proper position while also adding additional damage for your team. An experienced player knows this and does not limit themselves to melee alone.

If by chance you are fighting and get knocked-down, damaged, status effected then you are unable to do your primary role. You can never avoid having some of these things happen, but you can minimize them. If you are in the middle of the battle the chances of having one of these things happen is much higher and you become a liability for your party since the primary healer is now in trouble.

Versatility is the key to a successful AT, but experience matters the most since having too many things to do will leave most players simply confused.

[panzer_unit]

I can't imagine how it is on pc/ps2 if your not using some sort of voice client , granted if you know how to play and know your class you really shouldn't need one i mean cmon this game isnt that complicated.

I use the auto-follow a lot for typing on the move. One upside to keyboard is people never bitch for heals because if they stop running to talk they lose a scape lol. What I don't understand is people who get statused and don't ask for help... it's not like they've got more important things to do. All they've gotta do is SAY THEY NEED ONE and I can kung-fu flip over there mid-PA and pop a sol atomizer.

[mvffin]

why should anyone ask for a reverser? hmm, somebody is stun/sleep/frozen in the party, I think they're fine, i'll let them sit there.

[bloodflowers]

There are a lot of really bad ATs out there giving the good ones a bad name..

Just a few points, because a lot of what Hiero and Ffuzzy said is very sound advice. I don't agree with all of it though.

The argument about melee being slow and compromising positioning - I've found it quite the opposite, I'm usually in a better place to heal everyone when I'm right next to the enemies. No running, just bam - Resta 31 pretty much hits the 4 corners of every room. Additionally the melee output of an Acrotecher with good equipment is actually fairly respectable. Don't forget that everything is faster - considerably faster in fact. Only problem really is the whip - the damage output is incredible at maximum potential (over 2000% of ATP per second), but that one is pretty slow and best used on 1) spawns of many small creatures that pose no threat, or 2) on creatures with many hit boxes - try it in Bruce's on the Drua Gora for example.

Ranged is definitely preferable in areas with *very dangerous* creatures though, example Gaozoran spawns, you absolutely have to stay mobile, and cards really shine in these situations. Don't bother with mechguns at all - cards have higher DPS in this class. Twin handguns won't match cards either, but they're useful for flying bosses that can be difficult to lock onto effectively (tagging Dimmagolus's foot is pointless).

Next up on the points list are debuffs. Waste of time. I guess you might justify them if you solo a lot, but the time wasted debuffing an enemy is going to make no odds at all in a strong party, because the enemy won't be alive long enough for the debuff to make any kind of difference. Save the PA space...

Attach techs - only useful sometimes. Even for a Newman this is the case, there's no point being a static target and throwing ra-techs (gi-techs useless in this class due to the AotI range nerf) when you can be closer to the action and do damage faster with melee. Makes me cringe when I'm in a party and the Acrotecher is trying to be a Fortetecher. It's like buying a Sportscar and only using it to do the school run, so much potential wasted. On top of that, depending on platform or the PC specs of the people you're playing with, attack tech effects can /seriously/ gimp the damage output of your team due to slowdown.

Giresta / Resta - as stated much earlier in the thread, Giresta is a buff. Yes I know it takes longer to level Resta, but Resta is what keeps a gunner with Boma Duranga alive. Just try using Giresta when you have gunners who die on the third shot - it's your JOB to keep them alive, but Gi is just too slow. You can spam it over and over and they'll live for a while, but if you get interrupted at all by an enemy attack, they're toast.

[Gen2000]

I personally find people who ask for help during status effects annoying. I can see the status symbol next to your name, I'll get to you when I get to you if someone else hasn't already. Typing "Help" or some dumb "shocked" emcotion everytime you get an stun/freeze/sleep SE comes off as being needy and pathetic.

[Hiero_Glyph]

Just FYI, with the casting speed bonus and the huge Tech of the Pushan, you can toss over 1 Diga per second. 2,000+ damage per second from a fairly safe distance is not wasted potential. This may not work for Beasts and Casts though due to their lower base TP. Also note that even the Gi- techs have a casting speed increase, so they can deal some serious damage just like a whip but are also just as situational (it currently does not work on multiple hitbox targets). Like everything else, offensive technics when used correctly can be very beneficial to your team. If you want an example of what not to use as an AT, try the Dam- series; at least with Ra- PAs you can move between casts.

There are quite a few ways to play an Acrotecher effectively. This is both a blessing and a curse. Machineguns w/ Mayalee Fury can make an AT into an asset for a team against more diffcitul targets (get behind them and watch them twitch to death). Once again this is extremely situational but do not discount machineguns entirely. Cards are the highest DPS ranged weapons available for an AT. You can even use the animation trick (fire once while standing still, then begin strafing and immediately fire again) to increase your total damage even further. Handguns and twin handguns are the only first-person view weapons available to the AT so once again these are great for bosses and flying targets that cards are unable to target. So after all that, pick just one or two to use. Good luck and don't forget to train all of your bullet PAs up to 20.

[drizzle]

Buffs: Get them to 21 at least. I personally haven't gotten them to 31 yet, and don't plan on doing so until we get the PA exp increase. However, I haven't once had anyone complain about them not being 31. Concerning actual buffing, do it at the beginning of the mission, and refresh them as soon as possible every time they run out. Buffing someone after a death is also a good habit to make. If people run from your buffs and make no effort to come back within range, then forget about them, they obviously don't care so neither should you. If they try to get back in range, though, be patient and give them their buffs.


#1 You need to learn Level 31+ buffs.
#2 You're wrong. If people run, chase them down and buff. Waiting around for the nurse to do their job will slow the party down; just buff at the next spawn when people stop running, no problem. The class's primary focus is support. If someone's not buffed, you're not being good support.

[Talise]

Seriously, I hate it when techers randomly cast buffs and expect you to return to them. I'm an AT myself and I like to buff in the middle of battle 0_0. I guess I dun fit in the good support category though, I dun rebuff you if you die >_< and since you've died you know I failed to heal you 0_0.
Oh ya especially during event/timed missions(Party missions) STOP BUFFING AT THE GATES WE DUN HAVE THREE MINUTES TO WASTE.

[Sekani]

#1 You need to learn Level 31+ buffs.
#2 You're wrong. If people run, chase them down and buff. Waiting around for the nurse to do their job will slow the party down; just buff at the next spawn when people stop running, no problem. The class's primary focus is support. If someone's not buffed, you're not being good support.

Awesome troll post.

[panzer_unit]

There are a lot of really bad ATs out there giving the good ones a bad name..

the melee output of an Acrotecher with good equipment is actually fairly respectable.

Ranged is definitely preferable in areas with *very dangerous* creatures though, example Gaozoran spawns, you absolutely have to stay mobile, and cards really shine in these situations. Don't bother with mechguns at all

Next up on the points list are debuffs. Waste of time.

Attach techs - only useful sometimes. Even for a Newman this is the case, there's no point being a static target and throwing ra-techs (gi-techs useless in this class due to the AotI range nerf) when you can be closer to the action and do damage faster with melee.

All the fighting advice sounds GREAT for soloing, but using it to support a team? No. Nobody likes a Fortewhipper.

Maybe the person you want to ask for advice is someone who needs support from an Acrotecher, like a customer satisfaction questionaire? Here's my 2 meseta:

Your team's fighters will kill most enemies in one PA combo. If you're trying to "support", they DON'T need that much help with the amount of damage done... they DO need help with stopping the enemies from squeaking out hits that interrupt their PA. Use whatever doesn't waste time running in, hits as many targets as there are in the fight, and hits them as rapidly as possible.
The times when your fighters need help dealing damage, it's resistant monsters... in which case attack techs are best.

Debuffs can be awesome on certain enemies:
DFP buffs and ATP debuffs against stuff that has a low-damage stagger or knockdown hits (SEED Vitace tentacles, crap like that) will zero that damage and get rid of a huge source of annoyance.
EVP buffs and ATA debuffs against big stuff with garaunteed interruption hits (hello Svaltus) mean your fighters are much more likely to block and counter, skipping the time wasted getting back on their feet and starting the PA combo from its first regular attack... the result is a lot more PA damage done before the next interrupting hit comes.

There's nothing pathetic about telling people you're stunned/sleeping/frozen, especially for the support guys... don't expect your non-"support" teammates to be looking for character statuses. If your HP low and there's a good chance you'll get killed in the next couple hits goddamn it say something and maybe someone will throw a PA or atomizer your way. I love how people refuse to communicate and then blame their teammates for being bad players.

[Gen2000]

something about PAs taking forever to execute


Single-handed PAs in general execute the fastest out of all PAs in the game, adding AT's speed boost on top of that they don't take forever to execute. Whip is an exception not a rule and I think we call came to conclusion that Fortewhippers suck anyways.

Also if you're good support you don't need anyone to tell you their stunned/sleep/frozen before you reverser/heal them. If you're a good teammate in general you don't need this, I Sol/Star as quickly as possible even on my non-AT/FT/GT/WT chars unless I don't like you. All the party status info needed is displayed in the bottom left-hand corner. Shouting "Rez plz" or something similar everytime you're SE'd comes off as n00bish.

[Hiero_Glyph]

Single-handed PAs in general execute the fastest out of all PAs in the game, adding AT's speed boost on top of that they don't take forever to execute. Whip is an exception not a rule and I think we call came to conclusion that Fortewhippers suck anyways.

Also if you're good support you don't need anyone to tell you their stunned/sleep/frozen before you reverser/heal them. If you're a good teammate in general you don't need this, I Sol/Star as quickly as possible even on my non-AT/FT/GT/WT chars unless I don't like you. All the party status info needed is displayed in the bottom left-hand corner. Shouting "Rez plz" or something similar everytime you're SE'd comes off as n00bish.

Oh really? So a single-handed Skill PA is fast than a Bullet or Technic PA? That's news to me. Maybe what you meant to say is that a single-handed Skill PA is faster than most other Skill PAs. I mean that would make more sense, right? So exactly how long does a Just Attack Skill PA take? I can usually cast 1-2 technics or shoot 2-3 bullet PAs per second. I can also do both from just about anywhere. Can skill PAs work like that?

The point is that skill PAs can be very effective in certain circumstances, but overall you would be better served by using alternative methods to deal damage as most things would be dead after a single PA from a FF. So why bother running all the way to an enemy, just to have a FF take them out while you execute your PA? In that case you would be much more beneficial for your party to just shoot an extra bullet or cast a technic from a distance.

[panzer_unit]

Also if you're good support you don't need anyone to tell you their stunned/sleep/frozen before you reverser/heal them. If you're a good teammate in general you don't need this, I Sol/Star as quickly as possible even on my non-AT/FT/GT/WT chars unless I don't like you. All the party status info needed is displayed in the bottom left-hand corner. Shouting "Rez plz" or something similar everytime you're SE'd comes off as n00bish.

Reading comprehension FTW: I'm only talking about possible KO situations. So you're saying it's better to die and be a noob than just sound like one.

I hate seeing the support character get statused and killed without saying a word about it and then pitching an emo fit about how everyone else sucks at PSU, or nobody's appreciative of the great job they were doing because they're not the right race/job or their DPS isn't over 9000, or what have you. The reality is one guy was doing such a good job at heals/statuses that people barely look at their own HP let alone the rest of the party's.

[Talise]

I agree with Panzer, a lot. Keeping things pinned down in my opinion is the greatest thing you can do with your speed, this is the best way to support. Even if you're not doing equal damage, you're keeping things from attacking=support. Gen2000 is right on the status effect... if you're a support char you're looking at health, there's no way you can miss when someone is under a status effect,...that doesn't mean I have to reverser you if you're poisoned and are likely to get poisoned again... and I'm keeping watch over your health so you'd get healed if your health dropped. It's one thing to be aware of SE's, but taking every status effect off can just hinder your ability to support in other ways sometimes, you have to use judgement on this too.

[panzer_unit]

Just for example: as a fortefighter right now I need someone to tag every monster in a group for ~900 damage before my Anga Jabroga is instant 1-shot spawn ownage for Golmoros in SWS2.

[Hiero_Glyph]

As a fortefighter right now I need someone to tag every monster in a group for ~900 damage before my Anga Jabroga is instant 1-shot spawn ownage.

Sounds like a job for the Gi- technics! In all seriousness, it comes down to knowing your role in a party. Usually if someone is going to use Jabroken they need the monsters all grouped together, so someone needs to go up there and get their attention. Surprisingly, a debuff (Zalure in this case) always seems to work and would also boost Jabroken's damage by enough to insta-kill them all. But once again that means (using my best Soup Nazi accent) "No skill PAs for you!"

[panzer_unit]

Sounds like a job for the Gi- technics! In all seriousness, it comes down to knowing your role in a party. Usually if someone is going to use Jabroken they need the monsters all grouped together, so someone needs to go up there and get their attention. Surprisingly, a debuff (Zalure in this case) always seems to work and would also boost Jabroken's damage by enough to insta-kill them all. But once again that means (using my best Soup Nazi accent) "No skill PAs for you!"

I noticed that about aggro too... my GH465 mostly casts debuffs and she pulls monsters off of me all the time. Poor thing dies like it's going out of style though.

[Kerry157]

There are a lot of people in this thread who do not know what they are talking about.

[CeasOne]

There are a lot of people in this thread who do not know what they are talking about.

I like the cut of your jib.

On another epeen note : CeasOne member on psoworld since 2002 =) OLD School baby

[Gen2000]

Oh really? So a single-handed Skill PA is fast than a Bullet or Technic PA? That's news to me. Maybe what you meant to say is that a single-handed Skill PA is faster than most other Skill PAs.


Yeah I meant something like "single-handed melee PAs are faster than most melee PAs" or something, I don't even know anymore (I posted that before jetting off to work). Basically I never got the feeling it takes "forever" to execute them compared to most two handed PAs, especially with AT's speed besides the whip obviously.


I hate seeing the support character get statused and killed without saying a word about it and then pitching an emo fit about how everyone else sucks at PSU, or nobody's appreciative of the great job they were doing because they're not the right race/job or their DPS isn't over 9000, or what have you. The reality is one guy was doing such a good job at heals/statuses that people barely look at their own HP let alone the rest of the party's.

Heh I wouldn't pitch a fit, I'll just leave the party. From my experience if it was a KO situtation saying "Save Me!1" never changed anything unless another teammate was already on their way to help anyways. The last line is probably the reason why most don't help the support person, I can agree on that but guess I'm just in the minority that I'm always checking the status of the party regardless.

[Ffuzzy-Logik]

#1 You need to learn Level 31+ buffs.
#2 You're wrong. If people run, chase them down and buff. Waiting around for the nurse to do their job will slow the party down; just buff at the next spawn when people stop running, no problem. The class's primary focus is support. If someone's not buffed, you're not being good support.1. I'll get around to it sooner or later.
2. That's usually what I do anyway (buffing during a spawn), but some randoms I've seen are still too stupid to stay in buff range, and I'm not about to bend over backwards for someone who is unappreciative.