Post by John Robinson on Aug 19, 2014 15:30:10 GMT -5
Note to fallen: This is some source material for the Steam Guide.
Current form includes a grammatical error of too vs to.
There are other errors but it is a start.
Note: I had originally planned to use Kincaid in this group. After several days I knew he wouldn't fit well in this particular build.
My personal opinion is he could reach his maximum potential in a group that includes Fyona.
Crimson Rain Selen Plan
Mission: Fast Melee Fighter. Critical Hit Specialist. Dual Wield 2 1H Sything blades or consider a off hand Parry blade.
Main Attack: Punishing Blades(6). Frenzied Blows(5). Enhanced by Dance of Shadows(6).
EP2 A1 Level 25 Totals: 12 Attributes, 20 Skills, 16 Talents
Attributes: +3 Constitution(8) Toughness(8) +63 Hp. +8 Dexterity(14) Dodge(10).
Skills: +13 Blades(16). +7 Lore(9).
Talents: +4 Frenzied Blows(5). +6 Punishing Blows(6). +6 Dance of Shadows(6).
Duration: Dance of Shadows(6) 17 Turns. @ Lvl 25
Plan Analysis:
As Balgair can tell you Selen is the one character you will find in all of my Teams. Stealth Armor is no good to a front line fighter so she gets the best Light Armor available. She always uses 2 1h blades never a bow. Although a +7 Parry dagger looks good on paper her damage spread using a 2AP combo with 2 Scything blades is base 38-72 damage (3 attacks) has worked the best. Because of her Dodge factor of 0.75 a Dexterity of 16 will result in a maximum of +12 Dodge. So I lowered Dexterity to 14 for a +10 Dodge to spend points in Constitution. In past play Toughness has proven to be invaluable and in this build I've planned for it by adding +3 Constitution to raise her to Toughness(8) with an additional +63 Hp. She must move or die that is a true Shadow Dancer. I usually have Dance of Shadows(6) by level 25 so going into EP2 A2 a single talent point will raise her +2 MP to +3 MP. The most important difference in this build is my willingness to break the Sp piggy bank and go for Frenzied Blows(5) and Punishing Blades(6). This change makes a very big impact on accuracy, and damage for the group as a whole and critical hits for her. Punishing Blades(6) although expensive at 14 sp, is the lead attack followed by Frenzied Blows(5) with a much lower cost of 6 Sp. The reason for this is for the majority of attacks she must get a hit on the first attempt with Punishing Blades(6) the +10 accuracy should be enough to accomplish this. The importance of Punishing Blades(6) is by reducing enemy armor -22 the soak drops big time. For many average enemies it can reduce armor to zero. Combined with Vincent's Flash Freeze(6) the target's Dodge is reduced by 7. This allows Kyera's Holy Retribution, and Banishment get close to doing their maximum possible damage with more accuracy. You are really going to appreciate Punishing Blades(6) when the +40 and higher armored opponents start showing up. Quicksilver had to be eliminated to reach her build goals. By level 15 Kyera will provide her with Warders Shield(4) protection. After Kyera has met her EP2 A1 goals she will continue to raise Warders Shield from 4 to 10 giving everyone a +6 Parry and additional dodge. Deep into EP2 A2 Selen will begin working towards getting Quicksilver Defense(10) with its impressive +16 Parry, +16 Dodge bonus.
Critical Hit calculation at Level 25. +7 DoS(6), +5 Bone Ring, +8 Frenzied blows(5) = 20% Which is below her average but will grow as
Dance of Shadows reaches +16% (total 31%) as it stands she will hit more often and do more damage. More Hits makes More Crits.
Going into EP2 A2
By now even equipped with allot of +Sp gear she will be running short on the Sp needed for empowered attacks and Dance of Shadows(6). So will be alternating with Dex until Int reaches 8 adding another +53 Sp which also may provide an opportunity to drop one of the Sp pieces of equipment in favor of much needed armor as she waits for Kyera to continue increasing Warders Shield and Selen is 4 Talent points away from beginning to raise Quicksilver Defense. On attributes once the Dex and Int goals are met taking Constitution to 16 is the only way to fly. The very first talent point available going into EP2 A2 will go to DoS(7) to get the +1 MP bump for +3 MP. Bringing Lore skill up to 16 will boost Dance of Shadows to 24 Turns. Note regarding Stealth. Much like Natural Mastery for Vraes, Selen can increase her Stealth Skill far beyond the 16 cap. Dos(10) provides a +11 Stealth so even without additional equipment Selen can reach a Stealth level of 27, Should you ever decide to use the "Steel and Shadow" talent this should guarantee the "from surprise" requirement.
Attributes: Alternate +3 Int(8) +2 Dex(16). Then +8 Cont(16)
Skills: Alternate +7 Lore(16). +2 Stl(16) when totaled with DoS(10)
Talents: +1 DoS(7) for the 3 MP 8% +8 Stl. Then Alternate +2 Frenzied Blows(7). +2 DoS(10). Finally +10 Quicksilver(10) +16 Parry +16 Dodge.
Selen Checklist
| Lvl @ | Lvl | Attrb | Skills | Talents | SP |
| 60 | 3 | __+2 Dex(8) | __+2 Blade(5) | __ +1 P-Blade(1) +3 Acc. -3 Dmg. -6 Arm. 3 T | 3 |
| 168 | 4 | 0 | __+1 Blade(6) | __ +1 P-Blade(2) +4 Acc. -6 Dmg. -9 Arm | 5 |
| 360 | 5 | 0 | __+1 Blade(7) | __ +1 P-Blade(3) +5 Acc. -9 Dmg. -12 Arm | 7 |
| 660 | 6 | __+1 Con(6) | __+1 Blade(8) | __ +1 D-Shad(1) +1 MP. +2% C. +2 Stl. 8+L T | 6 |
| 1,092 | 7 | 0 | 0 | __ +1 D-Shad(2) +1 MP. +3% C. +3 Stl. | 10 |
| 1,680 | 8 | __+1 Con(7) | __+1 Blade(9) | 0 | xx |
| 2,448 | 9 | 0 | __+1 Blade(10) | __+1 D-Shad(3) +2 MP. 4% Crit. +4 Stl | 14 |
| 3,420 | 10 | __+1 Dex(8) | __+1 Blade(11) | 0 | xx |
| 4,620 | 11 | 0 | __+1 Blade(12) | __ +1 F-Blows(2) +5 Acc. +6 Dmg. 4% | 4 |
| 6,072 | 12 | __+1 Con(8) | __+1 Blade(13) | 0 | xx |
| 7,800 | 13 | 0 | 0 | __ +1 P-Blade(4) +7 Acc. -12 Dmg. -15 Arm | 10 |
| 9,828 | 14 | __+1 Dex(9) | __+1 Blade(14) | __ +1 F-Blows(3) +6 Acc. +9 Dmg. 6% | 7 |
| 12,180 | 15 | 0 | __+2 Blade(16) | 0 | xx |
| 14,880 | 16 | __+1 Dex(10) | 0 | __ +1 P-Blade(5) +8 Acc. -15 Dmg. -18 Arm | 12 |
| 17,952 | 17 | 0 | __+1 Lore(3) | __ +1 F-Blows(4) +7 Acc. +12 Dmg. 7% | 8 |
| 21,420 | 18 | __+ Dex(11) | __+1 Lore(4) | 0 | xx |
| 25,308 | 19 | 0 | __+1 Lore(5) | __+1 P-Blade(6) +10 Acc. -18 Dmg. -22 Arm | 14 |
| 29,640 | 20 | __+1 Dex(12) | 0 | __+1 F-Blows(5) +8 Acc. +15 Dmg. 8% | 6 |
| 34,440 | 21 | 0 | __+1 Lore(6) | 0 | xx |
| 39,372 | 22 | __+1 Dex(13) | __+1 Lore(7) | __+1 D-Shad(4) +2 MP. +5% C. +5 Stl | 18 |
| 45,540 | 23 | 0 | __+1 Lore(8) | __+1 D-Shad(5) +2 MP. +6% C. +6 Stl | 23 |
| 51,888 | 24 | __+1 Dex(14) | __+1 Lore(9) | 0 | xx |
| 58,800 | 25 | 0 | 0 | __+1 D-Shad(6) +2 MP. +7% C. +7 Stl | 28 |
| 66,300 | 26 |
Crimson Rain Vraes Plan
Mission: Fast Heavy Armored Melee Fighter. Specialty Kill Archers and Shaman.
Preferred Weapons: Any 1H Hammer and Shield. (Remember to buy the +7 shield in Bruenhold)
Primary Attack: Savage Sweep(6)
EP2 A1 Level 25 Totals: 12 Attributes, 20 Skills, 16 Talents Allocation:
Attributes: +2 Int(5). +6 Con(12). +4 Str(11)
Skills: +13 Hammer(16). +4 Leadership(5). +3 Lore(5)
Talents
+5 Savage Sweep(6) +9 Accuracy. +20 Damage. W/8 sp
+3 Burst of Speed(3) +2 MP. +3 Dodge. 3+Lore Turns
+8 Phalanx Shield(8) +10 Parry. +16 Armor. 41% Auto block ranged 6+Leadership Turns. 38 sp
Duration: +5 Lore(7) Burst of Speed(3) 10 Turns. +5 leadership(6) Phalanx Shield 12 Turns.
Plan Analysis:
Can Phalanx Shield replace Stone Skin? (thread link)
Think about Stone Skin(5) +150 HP. +16 Armor. +4 Earth resist. 30sp
Substitute Phalanx Shield(8) +10 Parry. +16 Armor. 41% Auto Block all ranged attacks. 38sp. Now add +6 Con = +156 Hp and +7 Toughness. Result you get the best of both worlds. The same number of extra Hp and + Armor as Stone Skin(5) with the bonuses of Phalanx Shield(8) and doubles his Toughness by adding +7, Toughness(14) for nearly the same cost in SP. Toughness is armor that cannot be reduced by enemy curses. (Toughness factor = 1.25 x +6 Con = +7 for total of 14)
Vraes must split his skill points between Leadership and Lore to retain his +2 MP speed. As a result his attack skills grow more slowly than any other build I've made. I have found 1H hammers usually have a little more accuracy and less parry. He doesn't have to worry about Parry. In combat I'm looking for consistency not massive damage hits. I like to call this model "Death by a thousand cuts". There are so many times that Selen or Kyera leave an enemy with 10 or 20 HP, this approach allows for 3 attacks per turn without wasting SP and AP. In previous builds he would miss a bowrat that has all of his HP, then hit a bowrat with 10 HP left for 110 points of damage, leaving him 1 attack left with his 2H weapon. If you look closely at the SP column you can see he is fairly fuel efficient. If you find a +60 SP item his needs will be met for the rest of EP2 A1.
Because of his high parry, HP and toughness I have a real opportunity to try loading him with all elemental damage equipment. Making sure of course each piece of gear does the same type, such as all fire, all lightning you get the idea.
Another thing to keep in mind is when Kyera reaches lvl 15 she will add another +2 Parry and a +3 Dodge with Warders Shield(3).
So at lvl 15 Vraes will have +9 Parry and Dodge of +5 (2 are from burst of spd). Eventually he will purchase the +7 Parry Shield in Brunehold and somewhere down the line Kyera will raise her Warders Shield to 10. With the high parry plus his 41% auto block ranged attacks, he can waltz through the melee defenders and take his time to relax and enjoy killing archers or have tea with a terrified Shaman.
Combat: Having him develop his main attack Savage Sweep(6) so slowly starting at level 13 must look like a recipe for disaster. It just might turn out that way. When I build a team I always try to remember there are 64 levels each character can reach. So what appears to be a very slow approach is during the early episodes. HoS is a very long game, getting to Savage Sweep(10) does not have to happen rapidly to succeed, Phalanx shield does need to stay ahead of enemy leveling, they get much higher levels of armor and parry with each level so will he. By the end of EP2 A1 he will only need +2 talent points to reach Phalanx Shield(10) and will have met his Savage Sweep(6) goal.
An important thing to remember is Shaman will stop throwing curses that require purifying breeze to lift once a party member is in a square next to them. Orcin Shaman have a curse that heavily reduces parry, dodge and armor. They cast when the warriors will be in striking range on the next turn. So even if you don't kill them right away just getting close enough for a cuddle really helps until Selen arrives.
Going Into EP2 A2
Attributes: Add +2 Intelligence then Alternate adding +1 Constitution and +1 Strength until they both reach level 16.
Skills: Hammers are maxed add +5 Leadership to extend Phalanx to 17 turns. Add +5 Lore to extend Burst of Speed to 15 Turns. Talents: Add +2 to Phalanx Shield(10) +13 Parry. +22 Armor. 52% 48 Sp. Then add +2 to Burst of Speed(5) +3 Move-only AP. +5 Dodge 42 sp.In the far future it is interesting to remember that Burst of Speed(10) provides +5 Move-only AP. +9 Dodge. +3 Parry for a whopping 82 sp.
You will want to increase Savage Sweep before trying to reach that goal.
| Lvl @ | Lvl | Attrb | Skill | Talents | SP |
| 60 | 3 | __ +2 Int(5) | __ +2 lore(4) | __ +1 Phalanx(1) +3 P.18% Autoblk 6+lead | 6 |
| 168 | 4 | 0 | __ +1 Lead(2) | __ +1 Burst of Speed(1) +1 MP +1 Dod 3+L | 10 |
| 360 | 5 | 0 | __ +1 Lead(3) | __ +1 Phalanx(2) +4 Parry +2 Arm 21% | 10 |
| 660 | 6 | __ +1 Con(7) | __ +1 lead(4) | __ +1 Burst of Speed(2) +1 MP +2 Dod | 18 |
| 1,092 | 7 | 0 | 0 | __ +1 Phalanx(3) +5 Parry +4 Arm 24% | 14 |
| 1,680 | 8 | __ +1 Con(8) | __ +1 lead(5) | 0 | xx |
| 2,448 | 9 | 0 | __ +1 Lore(5) | __ +1 Burst of Speed(3) +2 MP +3 Dodge | 26 |
| 3,420 | 10 | __ +1 Con(9) | __ +1 Ham(4) | 0 | xx |
| 4,620 | 11 | 0 | __ +1 Ham(5) | __ +1 Phalanx(4) +6 Parry +6 Arm 27% | 18 |
| 6,072 | 12 | __ +1 Con(10) | __ +1 Ham(6) | 0 | xx |
| 7,800 | 13 | 0 | 0 | __ +1 Savage(2) +5 Acc +4 Dmg | 3 |
| 9,828 | 14 | __ +1 Con(11) | __ +1 Ham(7) | __ +1 Phalanx(5) +7 Parry +8 Arm 30% | 23 |
| 12,180 | 15 | 0 | __ +2 Ham(9) | __ +1 Savage(3) +6 Acc +10 Dmg | 4 |
| 14,880 | 16 | __ +1 Con(12) | 0 | 0 | xx |
| 17,952 | 17 | 0 | __ +1 Ham(10) | __ +1 Phalanx(6) +8 Parry +10 Arm 33% | 28 |
| 21,420 | 18 | __+1 Str(8) | __ +1 Ham(11) | 0 | xx |
| 25,308 | 19 | 0 | __+1 Ham(12) | __+1 Savage(4) +7 Acc +16 Dmg | 5 |
| 29,640 | 20 | __+1 Str(9) | 0 | 0 | xx |
| 34,440 | 21 | 0 | __+1 Ham(13) | __+1 Phalanx(7) +9 Parry +13 Arm 37% | 34 |
| 39,372 | 22 | __+1 Str(10) | __+1 Ham(14) | __+1 Savage(5) +8 Acc +18 Dmg | 6 |
| 45,540 | 23 | 0 | __+1 Ham(15) | __+1 Phalanx(8) +10 Parry +16 Arm 41% | 38 |
| 51,888 | 24 | __+1 Str(11) | __+1 Ham(16) | 0 | xx |
| 58,800 | 25 | 0 | 0 | __+1 Savage(6) +9 Acc +20 Dmg | 8 |
| 66,300 | 26 |
Crimson Rain Vincent Plan
Mission: Enemy suppression. Reduce Number of attacks and damage per attack. Neutralize Archer Accuracy
EP2 A1 Level 25 Totals: 12 Attributes, 20 Skills, 16 Talents
Allocation: Attributes: +10 Int(16). +2 Dex(6). Skills +10 Conjur(13). +10 lore(12) Starts with Conjur(3) Lore(2)
Talents: +6 Flash Freeze(6). +8 Frigid Air(9). +2 Charged Speed(2).
Duration: Flash Freeze 21 turns. Frigid Air 21 Turns. Charged Speed 16 turns.
Plan Analysis:
The "All Curse" Vincent is the backbone of all the teams I build. The enemy tactics continue to improve and as seen in the Cultist temple can bring down the strongest of teams by attrition because they attack in overwhelming numbers. You cannot prevent being hit and damaged, Using curses Vincent can control how many times and how hard your team gets hit. I like to think of Curses as the strongest attacks in the game what other magic attacks have 100% accuracy? With the proper +sp gear and max Intelligence(16) he has a very large reservoir of SP to draw upon allowing him to use high levels of Flash Freeze and Frigid air in every battle. The value of Flash Freeze(6) is easy to understand with a -2 Mp, -7 dodge cast into a 9 square block. This reduces the number of times your party can be hit and the -7 dodge makes them vulnerable to melee attack by reducing standard defense dice, but even more so to Kyera's Banishment and Holy Retribution by reducing strong defense dice vs ranged attack. What about Frigid Air? There are many dangerous opponents in HoS but I think Archers and thrown weapons are the greatest threat to any team. They can stand safely back getting free shots slowly lowering the team members Hp to make them much more vulnerable to the melee fighters. Frigid Air(4) and above can and does shut them down. Hitting Archers with Flash Freeze followed by Frigid Air not only brings their attacks down from 3 to 1 but time and again I've seen massed groups of archers miss the target buying time for the team to deal with the closer opponents. The real power of Frigid Air is damage reduction. It reduces the damage every type of enemy can do per turn not just the archers. Next to Choking Ash it is the most cost effective curse in the game. Vincent can throw it at high levels all day long blanketing the battlefield that is why this build takes it up to Frigid Air(9) every cursed creature regardless of type will do 56 points less damage per attack because curses are 100% accurate. There is a huge increase in damage reduction when Frigid Air(9) goes to 10. Damage reduction will jump from 56 to 72 pts. If you have Conjuration 13 by the time Frigid Air hits level 6, the AoE expands from a 9x9 block to a 5x5 cloud. Archers tactics have improved they seldom form up in a cross pattern and have even learned the best way to stagger a block pattern but few will escape the edges of a cloud. I can hardly wait to use the cloud form of Frigid Air(6) in massed attacks by Cultists and Spiders in the Vurnak's underground Temple complex. The cost for FA(6) is 25 sp to cast and Vincent is usually running 650 or higher in sp points by then. Because he does not use magic attacks curses have no impact on his damage and accuracy. Another very big bonus you get from using Frigid Air is with the enemy doing less damage Kyera spends less time casting Myshana's Tears and more time attacking with HR and Banish. You also use fewer potions.
Tactics: Speed! Make sure Vincent has Charged Speed(2) or higher. This allows him to move forward to hit distant Shaman and Archers then retreat out of their attack range. It also provides enough speed to keep up with Selen. One of my favorite tactics is after casting his curses into the front lines. Vraes does a great job with Kyera shooting her Holy retribution from behind him. Next I pair Vincent with Selen and they move away from the front lines to circle around to flank the enemy. This is a great way to get at well protected Shaman and Archers. After casting his curses Selen just dives into them and starts killing them off quickly. As time permits adding +2 Charged speed will tack on another +1 MP. I have sometimes used a +1 MP item for even greater range and maneuverability. When traveling I like to use a "leap frog" pattern. Always make Vincent the second character you move up not the third. For example if Selen moves 3 squares ahead and doesn't trigger an ambush move Vincent to a square parallel to her, this way when enemy contact occurs he is far enough forward to cast his curses deep into enemy lines and retreat a small distance, Vraes will have +2 MP from Burst of Speed and can charge forward into the middle of the fray. Vincent started as a Jewel and after many experiments is a polished Diamond.
Going into EP2 A2:
Skills: +5 to Lore to bring it to 16 extending Charged Speed(2) to 20 Turns. You can leave Conjuration(13)
you never need more unless you want to extend your curses to a maximum of 24 turn duration.
Attributes:
Talents:
Add +1 Talent points to Frigid Air(10) to bring it to max -13 Acc, -72 dmg for 42 SP.
Then add +2 Talent to Charged Speed(4) to get the +3 MP.
What Next? He has reached all of his goals, the game is very long so he can plan for another set of long range goals.
His attack magic is short range 4. He could develop one for personal safety or to improve party damage after the enemy closes in front
of Selen and Vraes, so raising Sorcery and knowledge can begin. If he wants to gallivant with Selen in flanking maneuvers a high level of Lightning spear would work well if he gets caught flat footed and is great for firing from behind the front lines. Lightning Spear 10 2/26 63 - 134 Dmg. +15 Accuracy. Can hit up to 10 targets
. OR he can start adding more standard attack dice and damage to the team with Thundering Blades 10 3/42 +32 Lightning Dmg. +6 Accuracy. His Conjuration is already at +13 and Thundering Blades lasts 8+Conj for 21 Turns. *Note Energy Storm is a block AoE that reduces lighting resistance for 3 Turns making the damage team members get from Thundering Blades higher. Energy Storm 10 3/64 85 - 146. +13 Accuracy. -28 Lightning Resist for 3 turns.
Vincent Checklist:
| Lvl @ | Lvl | Attrb | Skill | Talents | SP |
| 60 | 3 | __ +2 Int(8) | __ +2 Conj(5) | __ +1 Flash Freeze(1) -1AP. -2 Dod. 1 Tar | 10 |
| 168 | 4 | 0 | __+1 Conj(6) | __+1 Flash Freeze(2) -1 AP. -3 Dod. Cross | 18 |
| 360 | 5 | __ +1 Int(9) | __ +1 Conj(7) | __ +1 Frigid Air(2) -4 Acc. -12 Dmg. Cross | 9 |
| 660 | 6 | 0 | __ +1 Conj(8) | __ +1 Frigid Air(3) -5 Acc. -16 Dmg. Block | 13 |
| 1,092 | 7 | 0 | 0 | __+1 Charged Speed(1) +1 MP. +1 Dodge | 10 |
| 1,680 | 8 | __ +1 Int(10) | __ +1 Conj(9) | 0 | |
| 2,448 | 9 | 0 | __ +1 Lore(3) | __ +1 Charged Speed(2) +2 MP. +2 Dodge | 18 |
| 3,420 | 10 | __ +1 Int(11) | __ +1 Lore(4) | 0 | |
| 4,620 | 11 | 0 | __ +1 Lore(5) | __ +1 Flash Freeze(3) -1AP. -4 Dod. Cross | 26 |
| 6,072 | 12 | __ +1 Int(12) | __ +1 Lore(6) | 0 | |
| 7,800 | 13 | __ +1 Int(13) | 0 | __ +1 Flash Freeze(4) -1AP. -5 Dodge | 34 |
| 9,828 | 14 | 0 | __ +1 Conj(10) | __ +1 Flash Freeze(5) -1AP. -6 Dod. Block | 42 |
| 12,180 | 15 | 0 | __ +2 Conj(12) | __ +1 Flash Freeze(6) -2AP. -7 Dod. Block | 50 |
| 14,880 | 16 | __ +1 Int(14) | 0 | 0 | |
| 17,952 | 17 | 0 | __ +1 Conj(13) | __ +1 Frigid Air(4) -6 Acc, -20 dmg | 17 |
| 21,420 | 18 | __+1 Int(15) | __+1 Lore(7) | 0 | |
| 25,308 | 19 | 0 | __+1 Lore(8) | __+1 Frigid Air(5) -7 Acc, -26 dmg still a block | 21 |
| 29,640 | 20 | __+1 Int(16) | 0 | 0 | |
| 34,440 | 21 | __+1 Dex(5) | __+1 Lore(9) | __+1 Frigid Air(6) -8 Acc, -32 dmg 5x5 cloud | 25 |
| 39,372 | 22 | 0 | __+1 Lore(10) | __+1 Frigid Air(7) -9 Acc, -38 dmg | 30 |
| 45,540 | 23 | 0 | __+1 Lore(11) | __+1 Frigid Air(8) -10 Acc, -46 dmg | 34 |
| 51,888 | 24 | __+1 Dex(6) | __+1 Lore(12) | 0 | |
| 58,800 | 25 | 0 | 0 | __+1 Frigid Air(9) -11 Acc, -56 dmg | 38 |
Crimson Rain Kyera Plan
Mission: Primary: Offensive magic Holy Retribution(4), Banishment(5).
Secondary: Warders Shield, Myshana's Tears and Purifying Breeze.
She really needs to find a +1 MP item to perform at her best because the rest of the group has talents that do it.
EP2 A1 Level 25 Totals: 12 Attributes, 20 Skills, 16 Talents
Attributes: +10 Int(16). +2 Knowledge(8).
Skills: +11 Invocation(14). +9 Conjuration(12).
Talents: +4 Warders Shield(4). +2 Myshana's Tears(3). +4 Holy Retribution(4). +1 Purifying Breeze(1). +5 Banishment(5)
Duration: Warders Shield(4) 20 turns.
Plan Analysis:
The only change I've made to Kyera in the last 3 games is taking Warders Shield(4) at Level 25 instead of Banishment(6). To make the very best use of Kyera you must locate and give her a +1 MP ring or item. The rest of the team can do it with Talent points she cannot. She misses out on getting her full attack turns because she is always using MP to get in and out of range. My last 3 teams didn't spend much time retreating. There are times when you want Kyera and Vincent to move forward and pass through infantry or archers to a better position while Selen and Vraes cover them. At the end of this plan I left her Conjuration at 12 and Invocation at 14. Conjuration 13 will allow complete coverage of the cloud form of Holy Retribution(7) although very powerful it is very expensive to use. I haven't made up my mind yet but will definitely take Banishment(6). I only need 2 points to max invocation for accuracy and in the meantime Knowledge attribute continues to improve it. "I must be doing something wrong I'm not getting much out of it" more than once I've heard this from friends and family when referring to Holy Retribution. Believe me it works, here's how:
Tactics: To get the best results from her attack spells, take Holy Retribution(4) right away to stay ahead of the monster leveling curve. Keep putting points into Invocation for Accuracy. I get all the way to level 18 with this everyday workhorse. Whenever possible have Vincent hit the target with Flash Freeze, and Selen with Punishing Blades, then Holy Retribution(4) 3/18 25 - 69 Holy Damage. +10 Accuracy will consistently hit in the upper 50's and 60's. +Holy Damage gear is laying around all over the place you shouldn't have any trouble finding a +12 holy damage item. Deathkin are her specialty they are weak to Holy damage, and she can damage them 80 to 90 points every turn without missing just using Holy Retribution(4) she is the team member that routinely kills them allowing the group to concentrate elsewhere. There are some types of Shaman who are weak to Holy Magic she wreaks the same havoc, what is interesting is they have been programmed to know it and will focus their attacks on her. Later in the game you can always raise the level of HR but points are just so tight for Kyera in EP1 and EP2 A1 you would have to sacrifice points in Banishment and that is a mistake. Always bank the +1 Talent point you get at Level 17 because you will not get one at level 18 the prerequisite level for your first rank of Banishment. The first rank will not impress you be patient this will get really good. Like any AoE attack spell the first target in the group must be hit or dice rolls will not be performed on any other targets inside the block. So if a Shaman with high resistance is surrounded by other opponents don't make him the first target of the spell. You will be surprised how often the Shaman will take damage because he was standing next to an archer that got hit. You should hit the group with Flash Freeze(6) and if possible get Selen to hit the first target for Banishment with Punishing Blades. Now fire off a Banishment and watch the damage ripple, some targets will simply be destroyed.
Ethereal Anguish(1) I leave it at 1 this is Vincent's job. Later in the game you will start to face Bosses or other very powerful creatures who have 4 AP so even if Vincent hits them with FF(6) they are still going to get in 2 attacks. If Kyera hits them with ethereal(1) the combined effect drops the number of attacks from 4 to 1. Vincent's Frigid Air will further reduce the damage of that single attack should it hit. Great way to stop an Orcin Berzerk or Troll.
Going into EP2 A2
Attributes: Add+8 to Knowledge(16) for more accuracy in the standard attack dice pool.
Skills: Add +1 Conjuration(13) to cover Banishment(7) cloud or 16 to raise Warders Shield to 24 turns. Add +2 to max Invocation(16).
Talents:
Add +1 Banishment(6) 4/61 45 - 118 Holy Damage. +15 Accuracy.
Optionally add another +1 Banishment(7) 4/70 53 - 128 Holy Damage. +15 Accuracy. 5x5 Cloud AOE. Do not take it any higher.
The most important thing to do after Banishment(6) is to add +6 to Warders Shield(10) 2/64 this will add +6 Parry. +10 Dodge to every team member. If she was not an attack mage I would do this much earlier.
Kyera Checklist
| Lvl @ | Lvl | Attrb | Skill | Talents | SP |
| 60 | 3 | __ +2 Int(8) | __ +2 Invoc(5) | __ +1 Holy Retrib(1) 12-24 Dmg. +6 Acc. | 6 |
| 168 | 4 | 0 | __+1 Invoc6) | __+1 Myshana's Tears(2) 70 HP | 12 |
| 360 | 5 | 0 | __ +1 Conjr(4) | __ +1 Holy Retrib(2) 16-40 Dmg. +8 Acc. | 10 |
| 660 | 6 | __ +1 Int(9) | __ +1 Invoc(7) | __ +1 Purifying Breeze(1) Cross Cure Curse | 10 |
| 1,092 | 7 | 0 | 0 | __ +1 Holy Retrib(3) 20-50 Dmg. +9 Acc. | 14 |
| 1,680 | 8 | __+1 Int(10) | __ +1 Conjr(5) | 0 | |
| 2,448 | 9 | 0 | __ +1 Invoc(8) | __ +1 Holy Retrib(4) 24-69 Dmg +10 Acc | 18 |
| 3,420 | 10 | __+1 Int(11) | __ +1 Conjr(6) | 0 | |
| 4,620 | 11 | 0 | __+1 Invoc(9) | __ +1 Myshana's Tears(3) + 130 HP | 18 |
| 6,072 | 12 | __+1 Int(12) | __+1 Invoc(10) | 0 | |
| 7,800 | 13 | 0 | 0 | __ +1 Warders(1) +1 Par,Dod 8+conj Cros | 8 |
| 9,828 | 14 | __+1 Int(13) | __+1 Invoc(11) | __ +1 Warders(2) +2 Par, +2 Dodge | 12 |
| 12,180 | 15 | 0 | __+2 Invoc(13) | __+1 Warders(3) +2 Par, +3 Dodge Block | 18 |
| 14,880 | 16 | __+1 Int(14) | 0 | 0 | |
| 17,952 | 17 | 0 | __+1 Conjr(7) | __ +1 Bank for Banishment | NA |
| 21,420 | 18 | __+1 Int(15) | __+1 Conjr(8) | __+1 Banish(1) 20-52 Dmg. +11 Acc. R6 Crs | 16 |
| 25,308 | 19 | 0 | __+1 Conjr(9) | __+1 Banishment(2) 24-64 Dmg. +11 Acc | 25 |
| 29,640 | 20 | __+1 Int(16) | 0 | 0 | |
| 34,440 | 21 | 0 | __+1 Invoc(14) | __+1 Banishment(3) 29-76 H dmg +12 Acc | 35 |
| 39,372 | 22 | __+1 Know(7) | __+1 Conjr(10) | __+1 Banish(4) 33-86 dmg +13 Acc Block | 43 |
| 45,540 | 23 | 0 | __+1 Conjr(11) | __+1 Banish(5) 39-104 dmg +14 Acc | 52 |
| 51,888 | 24 | __+1 Know(8) | __+1 Conj(12) | 0 | |
| 58,800 | 25 | 0 | 0 | __+1 Warders Shield(4) +3 Par, +4 Dodge | 24 |
| 66,300 | 26 | Not reached |
In this or another thread I'll recap of the performance of each team member as they finished EP2 A1 or higher.
This one took allot longer than I thought it would, and still has embarrassing grammatical errors
