Tree of Savior Forum

Advice for an aspiring Dex-Con Inquisitor? (hear this one out please)

Class and Rank Cleric
#1

Hi everyone. I have been scouring the forums these past few days to get a good idea of how to build a PVE (soloist) melee Inquisitor. Still torn to be honest. I have seen: C2>P>Pal3>M/Kab/PD>Inq, C2>P2>M2>PD/Kab/Ora>Inq, and C2>P2>M3>Inq (I have also seen Druid and Miko variants).

While I have some friends that I play with, I will likely play solo often, and hence would want to get as much solo capacity out of my toon as possible (i.e. a good mix of survivability in soloing dungeons, decent DPS, no/minimal downtime). I also wish to ask advice on what attributes to focus on, in connection to the class/skill build that you would recommend.

Where I am now:
Cleric C2: 10 Heal, 4 Cure, 8 SZ, 5 DM, 3 Fade
Priest C1: 2 Aspersion, 1 Monstrance, 5 Blessing, 2 Resurrection

If itā€™s not too much trouble, please suggest builds that take off from my current skill build (as much as possible, I want to avoid using resets for now).

Stat-wise, Iā€™m building towards 70-100 Con and then the rest into Dex.

I have read the following very informative threads: Preliminary beginners guide to Clerics; Inquisitorā€™s Thread, Kabbalist Overview, and Rontequeā€™s C2>P1>Pala3>?>Inq3 (Physical build) thread - among others. You would then say: well, then you should know the answer to you question by now. Thatā€™s the thing: I donā€™t. Rontequeā€™s thread and the Inquisitorā€™s Thread, while extremely informative, only got me thinking more. Hence Iā€™m asking the question specific to my current progress and preference.

You would notice that I posted an earlier thread, suggesting a C3>Pal3>P1>Inq build. An idea which came about as a reaction to some comments Iā€™ve read that building a Dex Inq is a difficult road, and that for the most part, your damage will revolve around Cure and Heal. Rather disappointing and scary, and so in reaction, I thought of C3 (which as I have realized, might have been a stupid idea in the first place).

As you can see, this is a newbieā€™s plea for help from experts and veterans. I hope you would kindly indulge.

Thank you!

Help, for path of the Inquisitor (Mobbing Type / Soloing)
#2

What I take away from all the reading is:

  • you wanna solo able build
  • you want physical melee

What I donā€™t know is:

  • how you play
  • what gear you have access to (and budget)

How you play
Do you wait for [heal] and [cure] before you engage? If yes are you ok with waiting (and what do you do while waiting)? If no do you just do anything you can to deal damage?

Do you wanna just dps or are you open to supporting the party here and there? I know you want to solo but itā€™s gonna happen (maybe not with your friend and mostly strangers, but itā€™s gonna happen).

Gear and budget
What do you use and how much can you spend on upgrades if any?

#3

Hi C2! Thanks for the response!

About skill rotation: I donā€™t wait for heal and cure, I engage even when both skills are on cooldown, and then later on include it in the rotation once available.

About DPS/Support: I roll with whatever would increase and sustain my capability to easily solo enemies. So I guess that would be DPS (since I also benefit from it while soloing, support, not - although please correct me if I have the wrong impression).

About gear and upgrades: I have an irrational preference for blunt weapons (i.e. maces, hammers, etc). The gear that I use (and the only ones I have access to) are those provided to me by quest rewards. Havenā€™t really thought about upgrades yet (Iā€™m only lvl63), and I am dirt poor. Right now, I use whatever money I have to buy attributes (hence my query on attributes as well).

Looking forward to your reply.:slight_smile:

#4

So how do you feel about that? Do you like/dislike it? Do you want to always have something to do? These questions address the 2 popular forms of dps: burst vs sustained.

If you prefer waiting on cdā€™s, you generally go for priest1 for [monstrance] and/or paladin3 for [conviction] + [god smash] combo. So that makes it cleric2-priest1-paladin3-x-inquisitor. If you go this route, you would do well to get in touch with @Wrathior.

If you prefer having something to do all the time, you generally go for at least monk1. I prefer the beast version (I call it the monqui) and you should get in touch with @b4nj0.

More ranks in monk are unknown territory to me since they are in the works (IMC already announced a couple of changes).

There are some known support ranks that work solo: kabbalist1 and miko.

Kabbalist1 gives you 2 skills to work with really: [revenge 7 fold] and [ein sof].

Revenge basically prevents 1 hit and reflects that hit back x7 (hence the name). This combos with [pears of agony] from inquisitor. Pears plants up to 5 ā€œbodiesā€ on the ground that can take damage and receive the revenge buff. So thatā€™s x7 damage x (5 pears + you) = x42 damage reflected back at a boss (boss quest or dungeon/mission).

[ein sof] is generally for sp, but you can combo it with [guardian saint] from cleric3 should you go that path. Itā€™s a gimmick though and not really recommended. Iā€™m just saying ā€œyou canā€.

Miko is generally useful over all. The combo you want is [kagura dance] + [pears of agony]. Kagura is a CHANNELING skill that grants melee skills 50% more damage as holy damage. Pears is a time delayed (up to 10 secs delayed) melee skill. The combo is:

  • safety zone
  • throw pears
  • fade (if solo)
  • dance

Get in touch with @Nekorin for more info (or read this thread)

Gear
Spend NOTHING. Wut? Yeah, NOTHING. The only time you are going to spend money is when buying pardoner buffs and when you see some specific gear on the market.

What to look out for:

  • cafrisun set
  • 5 hammer (open all 5 sockets and donā€™t upgrade)
  • red gems (lv3 or 4 if you feel like spending more)

Otherwise use what you find (quests give a lot of stuff).

#5

Thanks so much C2! That was quite a comprehensive rundown.

Itā€™s becoming clearer now, but I hope you can still spare a bit more time to help me figure this out more:

  1. About DPS/Sustained damage = not really too particular about it, what Iā€™m more concerned about is what helps me dispatch enemies faster.:slight_smile: Iā€™ve read in @Rontequeā€™s thread that he is regretting having respecced from C2>P2>M2 into C2>P1>Pal3, that in so doing, he lost quite a bit of DPS as a result. What are your thoughts on this? Iā€™ve actually been considering going the Paladin3 route, but got a bit discouraged after reading his thread.

  2. Iā€™ve read in the Inquisitorā€™s Thread that @Wrathior is fundamentally against going the Paladin route:

As for a Paladin based Inq, I know Iā€™ve said this a lot already but I really donā€™t recommend it. The damage you gain is so minimal while you lose sooooo much utility/survival. A Miko-Inq would offer FAR more damage.

That again watered down my interest in continuing the Paladin route.:frowning:

But reading your comments, I have renewed interest in going: C2>P>Pal3>Kab/M>Inq. Iā€™m just having difficulty reconciling my plans of pursuing that route (and which of the two - Kab/Monk - would be a better choice), having read what I have in previous threads.

Further guidance would be much appreciated, and thanks again for allotting time for this man.:slight_smile:

#6

In YOUR situation (1st toon? dirt poor? want a paladin?) I would go c2-p-pal3-monk-inqui but I would take monk asap instead of paladin3. It would look like this c2-p-pal1-monk-pal3-inqui.

I have a c2-deiv-pal3-c3 (was a paladin3 before any news on r8 came out). The only reason I could do this was because of the many xp events we had in the past (stopped questing after lv 100 and did pure missions to r7). By lv 200 party grind with strangers is just more efficient (even MORE efficient in a premade with friends).

So this is to say pal3 is not gonna be pure hell. Itā€™s doable.

I also have a a-qs3-ro-falcon3. [running shot] from qs3 carried me to r8. This basically meant my auto atk did x3.8 damage with very low down time. It let me solo everything.

This is to say monk1 with [double punch] will let you solo everything up to 200.

Btw, go full DEX (as little CON as possible). Not critting really hurts the dps.

And what server are you on?

#7

Iā€™m uncontested R1 at every Blut. I can support and carry Solmiki (up to 30F so far). I am very capable in PvP/GvG.

Can a Pally build claim the same for all those points? Nope.

#8

If you are ok with not going paladin3, Iā€™ld listen to this more than anything Iā€™ve said. After so many ā€œfailed attemptsā€ of my own, I would rather just listen to a tried and successful build than experiment or roleplay.

Remember, everything Iā€™ve said are ā€œthings you CAN doā€. When you save enough money to throw around on an experiment, sure why not.

#9

Thank you so much you two.:slight_smile:

@Wrathior, just some questions on your recommended build, if you donā€™t mind:

1> Would it be a good option to replace Oracle with Monk2 or Miko as Rank 6 to obtain better DPS?

2> Iā€™ve also read in a discussion thread that you rely on support for damage consistency:

My build indeed focuses on a lot of defensive classes leading up to Inquis with Monk being the only offensive pick. As others have stated, DP is actually really good. It maybe do little damage alone, but when stacked with some debuffs from youā€™re party (or even just a simple Lethargy), you can already hit for up to 100k per punch (25k + Wheel). Plus it has a +25% strike dmg debuffā€¦ and all your attacks are Strike.

To whoever said I rely on my team to do the dirty work, that is half true. I lack a little on consistency but my DPS is actually amongst the top for most content and it is the top for prolonged fights (a.k.a 330 WB). Like all DPS carries though, I do rely on good support to boost my damage.

How does the build compare in terms of solo play as opposed to other builds (i.e. Paladin3)?

3> As I have mentioned, I am very much dirt poor. Is this build um, money friendly (i.e. doesnā€™t require rare, expensive gears to reach optimal potential)?

4> A bit concerned with the progression from Priest 2 to Monk 1 (I can imagine it to be quite grindy), is there a way to tweak the build a bit to make the climb a bitā€¦ easier?

Thank you! Oh and @c2gaming.seetoo, I really appreciate all of your comments man.:slight_smile: In your opinion, what would be the advantage of going Paladin3 vis-a-vis a Monk2 variant? In his guide (i.e. Preliminary beginners guide to Clerics), @Wurmheart mentioned that a Paladin3 variant isā€¦:

Similar to the monk version, but with less damage and more utility. Conviction boosts god smashā€™s damage so itā€™s a lot better then expected.

Based on your experience (having had a Paladin3 yourself), would you agree?

#10

I would say itā€™s less hectic/frantic. On the paladin, there arenā€™t that many buttons to press (to the point where you can just sit back and do nothing for some time). See, the monk comes with the 0cd [double punch]. That means you are always pushing some button at all times.

Personally, I like having ā€œroom to breathā€ even if it means Iā€™m sub optimal. Either that or auto atk + mouse mode (itā€™s why I like qs3 and chaplain).

#12

Giving some random infoes:

  • monk1/druid2 variant is the build that Iā€™m using atm and I love it, since it gives the highest dps overall and give you really high crit rate with no effort, BUT keep in mind that you are gonna play in monster form all the time (no animation + stuck if hitted) so itā€™s still a gimmick and off meta build for sure. Also, the fact that you need oracle to have access to the best transformations is a slop couz it requires hours of rerolls and u either need a very good friend :stuck_out_tongue: or an oracle alt

  • given the buffs to monk, going monk 2 can be slighty more interesting right now

  • Miko letā€™s you buff your own pearl while channeling and the combo can be pretty strong overall, it also buff wheel but I see it more as a corner case scenario, at least for a dex build.

As I see it, monk1/oracle1/kaba1 is the most defensive option (and way more the best version for pvp) but, if u want to focus mainly on pve, u can try at the very least the following dex variants:

monk2/miko/inqui
monk1/druid2/inqui
monk1/miko/oracle or kabba/inqui

Depends on personal taste, honestly.

Paladin, to me, is still an attractive char, but I would rather think, at this point, to go INT, since miko skills are int based, and to try hybrid headslots (hp+elemental dmg) to go with it. Something like C2/x/paladin3/imiko/inqui.

restoration 15/15 buff animus, you have 4 (5, if u switch heal) magical dps skill in rotation, you do have the pearl/wheel into channeling, you bring a nice support overall to the table thx to paladin and miko utilities: channelings, conviction into wheel, malleus and monstrance always up if u go priest 1 at rank 3 filler.

Just my2c at least :wink:

edit: on the ā€œmoneyā€ friendly fact. It is still a dps toon. So no, itā€™s not money friendly IMOā€¦ But thatā€™s ok. When u will be at 315+ do 290 full run daily and u will have all attributes 50+ in no time. This game is grinding no matter what.

#13

  1. If PvP isnā€™t a concern to you then you could pick up Miko for better solo damage via dancing for your own Pear procs. Itā€™s still much better to party one though as you canā€™t do anything else while channelling dance. Youā€™ll miss out on DP/God Smash getting boosted by Kagura and I can actually hit 400k+ per DP on Blut with it.

  2. I donā€™t rely on support for consistency. I rely on them to multiply my damage. Lethargy, Serpentine, Slithering, High Kick, Headbutt and Kagura. Having Lethargy alone already doubles my damage and anything more than that just becomes insane.

Paladin3 build would do better in a solo situation as youā€™ll have the Conviction combo. Thatā€™s about it.

  1. Iā€™d say this build isnā€™t really a budget build. Youā€™ll need Sisselā€™s and Green gems to get your crit up to 100%. High p.atk and attribs in DP are essential to get that to do some respectable damage otherwise itā€™s kinda meeeh. Only support builds can work without much investment though tbh. I donā€™t think any DPS class can get to the top without some investment

  2. Levelling is insanely easy, I donā€™t know what youā€™re worried about. Press ā€˜Zā€™ and kill everything in 1 or 2 hits with Cafri, Sacra and some cheap costumes.

#14

And thatā€™s pretty much why I prefear druid 2 in PvE. You can skip sissel for gladi/phada AND green gems with 80%+10 crit rate multiplier.

#15

[quote=c2gaming.seeto] I would say itā€™s less hectic/frantic. On the paladin, there arenā€™t that many buttons to press (to the point where you can just sit back and do nothing for some time). See, the monk comes with the 0cd [double punch]. That means you are always pushing some button at all times.

Personally, I like having ā€œroom to breathā€ even if it means Iā€™m sub optimal. Either that or auto atk + mouse mode (itā€™s why I like qs3 and chaplain). [/quote]

BURST vs SUSTAINED DPS

Based on what c2.gaming said, yes that is pretty much what I feel now after playing more Paladin over the weeks. As a Monk in parties previously, I do notice that sometimes I can hardly find the time to go on the offense as a sustained damage dealer as I am also a healer/support. I have to buff and constantly watch my teammates health and heal/resurrect them. I canā€™t DP while doing this. While the damage is definitely better as Monk compared to Paladin, it is still nothing compared to a Cleric3, Krivis3, Diev3 or those Wizards because skills that work as a fire-and-forget like cure, zaibas, frost cloud, hamaya, etc will MELT everything.

Monk doesnā€™t offer any ā€œdamage-over-time AoE tilesā€ skills besides garbage bleed damage from palm strike. As a sustained damage dealer, his sustained damage pales in comparison to classes with ā€œdamage-over-time-tilesā€ skills because the only form of sustained DPS is DP and DP requires HEAVY investment to make it really work at later levels.

Mind you I played C2>P2>Monk2 the hard way before rank resetā€¦ I literally auto attacked everything to death using sacrament + blessing with cafrisun set and arde dagger because my auto attack does more damage than DP for a long time until I leveled DP attribute -_-ā€¦ Now leveling a Paladin3 is simply conviction + smiting things to death. I STILL auto attack butā€¦ whatever at least I donā€™t have to constantly buff myself with blessing + sacrament anymore.

It was a pain to let go of my Monk2 and reset into Paladin3. And yes my damage did fall off really bad and I can only hope for Inquisitor1 as soon as possible. But I feel that once I unlock Inquisitor1, it will change everything. In a way, I feel like Paladin3 is the ā€œnatural advancementā€ toward inquisitor which is also one of the reason why I reset to paladin3ā€¦ aggro mobs->barrier up->Monstrance-> Wheel-> Conviction-> God Smash-> Smiteā€¦ Do your healing, support, buffing, pears, whatever and re-position yourself ready for the next burst. <ā€” Now all this does sound more appealing to me than do everything, done now DP DP DP DP, done, now heal heal heal, now BURST, now DP DP DP, now heal heal buff buffā€¦

I definitely feel the hectic/frantic nature of a support Monk while I was C2>P2>Monk2ā€¦ Paladin3 feels moreā€¦ relaxing to play I guess? More breathing room just like what C2 said and for once, I really appreciate this playstyle now after more time spent on Paladin3 despite the lower damage I got right now.

Now I am already level213, steadily gaining a few levels everyday closing into rank7ā€¦ I think I have pretty much decided to go either Kabba1 (Einsof and R7) or PD1 (Healing factor, Blood-letting and Beak Mask, 0/5 Incinerate)ā€¦ No more Monk1.

Oh and one more point to add, based on the direction the devs are heading with the game you can see how high the base damage R8 skills already areā€¦ I cannot imagine R9 and R10ā€¦ The gap will probably widened again in the future causing Monkā€™s damage to fall behind even furtherā€¦ That I feel it would be safer bet to pick your lower rank classes for more utility to compliment your higher rank damage skills.

1 Like
#16

Wow guysā€¦ Thank you so much for responding - the thread has become a really nice treasure trove of comments from veteran clerics.:slight_smile:

I am really now inclined to pursue: C2>P>Pal1>M1>Pal3>Inq, as suggested by @c2gaming.seetoo. On to some specifics:

  1. How would skill rotation for this look like at R7? (I am hoping that DP will still provide some form of DPS boost?)

  2. Attributes? Right now Iā€™m focusing on SZ Block Count for Cleric.

#17

So long as you understand what youā€™re choosing and what youā€™re giving up, I hope you enjoy.

[smite] 9
[conviction] 12/26

[palm strike] 15
[hand knife] 15

[god smash] 30
[breaking wheel] 50

basic paladin combo
[conviction] >1> [smite][smite] >9> [smite][smite] >8> [conviction] >1> [smite][smite]

Now both will be on cd with [conviction] at 26 and [smite] at 9

basic monk combo
[double punch] > [hand knife] > [palm strike] > [double punch] until cdā€™s are up

Let me state for the record I HATE both [hand knife] and [palm strike] design wise. I HATE em! I HATE em! I HATE em! I HATE em! I HATE em! I HATE em! For the level you get them they are ok but:

  • they knock down by default. I HATE that (lucky we get ā€œoffā€ atts).
  • they do ā€œnothing differentā€. They are ā€œuse for damageā€

Sure [hand knife] has the combo with [deprotect zone], but [d-zone] is bad as well. As time goes on, the damage they offer is gonna get smaller and smaller compared to other sources of damage (trans weapon damage, gem damage) to the point where you just [double punch] again instead of using these 2.

I would personally just paladin combo + [double punch] in between cdā€™s. That said, you wonā€™t be able to pull this off most of the time vs bosses and sometimes vs some monsters. IMC had the genius idea to give (almost) every boss knockback normal atks. They even gave this to normal monsters, WTF.

So play, find a rhythm and just let it happen. Just remember the hard coded combos:

  • [conviction] into [smite] for triple [smite] hits
  • [conviction] into [god smash] for double [god smash] damage

For attributes use this to balance your silver. For you gear should come 1st (again, what server u on?)

#18

Haha, hilarious man! Ah, I totally forgot to mention! Iā€™m in Varena (SEA). Team name is Whiteblade.:slight_smile: I think one of those 2 knock-back/down skills has an attribute to nullify the effect, no? Oh and the bad thing with my build isā€¦ I didnā€™t bother to get D-Zone.:cry:

In any case, you have been an absolute toon saver man. I owe you, as well as the rest (i.e. @Wrathior, @b4nj0, and @Ronteque). I imagine myself still referring back to this thread in days to come.

Thanks a ton everyone!

#19

Hissssssssssssss~ varenian ssssssssscum!!

Roleplay aside, no free stuff for you then. I really like when a complete newb (not noob) comes in.

1 Like
#20

kind of my own question here but also on topic, im already a C2-> P1-> pala3->PD i want to know when it will be a good idea to invest in a better weapon im actually using valia , im lvl 226 atm, and also what are good gems to equip to my new weapon.

#21

Just use a 5-Hammer with 5x 5star red gems. Untill you can get a 315 weapon of choice.

Do not trascend the five-hammer just use it as it is.

Also it would help to know if you are physical build or INT build.