A Better Mousetrap..

[Shimeran]

I've done some peeking at the alchemy skills and the unassuming "Rodenticide" seems really nice. The sleep effect keeps enemies out of my hair while the poison does them in. It also means I can sleep an entire group and pick out the trouble makers one by one. The biggest question is what second mastery best supports this skill? Here are the canidates that seem to stand out.

Archery's sickening arrow is nice for stripping of the poison resistance of undead and constructs and the elemental arrows let me change tactics nicely. Anesthetic arrow and the glue trap skills also look like nice support.

Mysticism has some nice resistance lowering skills. White Flame is reliable but requires melee weapons. Exorcism gives me range but a longer cooldown. The mastery also provides some support against undead.

Vampirism's Sickness skill adds some nice damage and resistance lowering, though I don't know if they're any chance of it breaking the sleep effect. In any case, the mastery does have some good damage skills for taking out targets quickly.

Right now I'm leaning toward archery, but I'd like to see what you folks think.

[SilentHawk]

Avoid vampirism. I have an experimentalist and once you hit normal rhodes and onward (or even before then, with tigermen and draconians) it'll be pretty much game over. You'll have very little towards health to support this class and your defensive abilities just don't make up for it.

As I see it, there are primary classes (storm, warfare) and there are secondary support classes, (dream, spirit) like in normal TQ.

Here is how I see it:
Primary classes
Archery
Bestiary
Close Combat
Construction
Mysticism
Sorcery

Secondary classes
Alchemy
Construction
Cronosophy
Mysticism
Vampirism

Both construction and mysticism can play both as primary and support.

However, as for your question, I would go either Archery or Close Combat (battle aura's synergy provides reduced resistance debuff).

[claudius]

I'm playing experimentalist and I find it pretty strong. Soul Shiver artifact is pretty sweet with 5 pts in vibrancy. You can now leach undead . I did put about 15 attribute pts into health. Currently I have 2500 with gear. In epic with more skill pts and a purple weapon it is a killer. Bats get good again in epic too. You can have 3 bats. High spirits is a good skill in normal act 4 because the running speed can help you get away from fire. Blurred vision is good too. Max feasting gives you a ranged attack that can kill single targets usually (normal).

I think you will like your experimentalist once you get over the hump.

[i.n.s.a.n.e]

Originally Posted by claudius

Bats get good again in epic too. You can have 3 bats.

Hi there,


What the...3 Bats? How? When?

[The Rock-man]

Maybe its a super max bonus thingy you know get to ulti lvl and you get some sweet stuff. Or its a bug where it reverts to wolf numbers?

[i.n.s.a.n.e]

Originally Posted by The Rock-man

Maybe its a super max bonus thingy you know get to ulti lvl and you get some sweet stuff. Or its a bug where it reverts to wolf numbers?

The second is most probable... The ulti is..something different. Anyway, I wonder at which lvl he can summon 3 bats...I think it is impossible, but I might be wrong... I am sure the stats do not show the number of 3 bats...but if you can or cannot summon 3...I am not sure of...dang...

[claudius]

Oh sorry maybe only 2 bats. I was just under the influence of jubilation when I hit a mastery shrine to summon a stronger bat and a second bat came. I have my pts up to 12 and still no third bat but I am hoping

Sorry for the false alarm...I should be hung be my toenails and mercilessly whipped

[i.n.s.a.n.e]

Originally Posted by claudius

Oh sorry maybe only 2 bats. I was just under the influence of jubilation when I hit a mastery shrine to summon a stronger bat and a second bat came. I have my pts up to 12 and still no third bat but I am hoping

Sorry for the false alarm...I should be hung be my toenails and mercilessly whipped

Hehe, no problem. And you can have only two, sorry...

BUT!!!! ......see for yourself...