Recommended races: Human, giant.
Simple to play, you can’t go wrong with simple melee combat. Elves will have a harder time, but that’s to be expected.
Recommended ages for warriors:
- Human: Humans have maximum strength growth from age 10 all the way to 21. In that regard, it honestly doesn’t matter what age you pick when you rebirth. If you want the absolute best growth across all stats, you’ll want ages 11-13 (0 Int growth at those ages however).
- Elf: Maximum strength gains for elf lie on ages 18-22 which an active player is unable to reach. With that being said, the next best ages are 13-15 which has an emphasis on HP/Stamina and more will.
- Giant: Giants gain max strength from age 10-14. Age 11-12 is recommended for maximum gains in other stats as well (giants mature really young, it would seem).
I highly recommend getting windmill to rank 1 while your CP is still low (preferably you rank windmill exclusively and don’t bother to rank anything else). The training requirements for windmill in G13 are extremely grindy and if TNN zombies aren’t boss to you then you are going to have a bad time. In terms of growth speed, warriors are basically stuck at slow growth speed while training windmill, and fast growth after that, especially with the 2x AP server rates.
For non-warriors, I still recommend getting windmill to rank 9 at the very least for the reduced load time, mainly for archers, or better yet get to rank 5 for the boosted attack radius. Archers want a lot of will for crit anyways, so getting windmill ranked is a good idea regardless.
This guide isn’t going to teach you basic melee combos like N+1 or anything like that. If you need to learn, you can probably ask people in game and they’ll be glad to assist.
Remember, humans can take Ranald’s classes at the Tir Chonaill school, granting 5 strength and 2 will after passing all 3 of his classes.
Recommended titles for warriors:
- Bear/Golem slayer with a single blow: Both are 30 Str titles and aren’t difficult to get. Pick one based on which stats you’re willing to lose.
- Master of Stomp (giant only): This is the only 40 Str title and it is recommended for giants to get this title right after completing windmill.
- Master of Shock: This gives a generic 15 max damage. Maybe someday someone will pull this off.
Skills that need special consideration: Smash damage multiplier is equal across all 3 races. Giant smash did not get the boosted multiplier until G14.
Melee weapon recommendations:
Gladius
I recommend a pair of 230 gladius to start off with for humans. Boasting high balance and min damage, along with decent max damage, this is a good starting weapon to work towards. However, they end up with no crit, and should be discarded once you begin ranking combat mastery/sword mastery and are able to handle low balance weapons.
Broadsword
Once you have combat mastery and sword mastery ranked up along with a bit of dex, humans should be able to wield a pair of iconic 222 broadsword with balance that is hopefully close to 80. Boasting 73 max damage with a nice 30% crit, this makes for a very powerful weapon. However the balance is definitely on the low side and having 0 min damage does not help at all. Getting the two masteries ranked up is a must, along with some dex. Elves may be able to wield this with decent balance due to having more dex, however I recommend using a blunt weapon or axe for elves. Broadswords also have the bonus of being very cheap to maintain compared to gladius and two-handed swords. I highly recommend getting smithed broadswords for the extra durability.
Battle Sword
For people that like to gamble, a pair of artisaned battle swords will be the strongest dual sword set in the game. A perfect pair of battle swords can grant 150 strength and luck, however it has a chance of utterly destroying your dex. Boasting(?) one of the lowest balance in the game for a sword type weapon and a potentially dex-reducing artisan, you’ll probably be trying to power through enemies while praying for high balance rolls every time you hit. Artisan removal kits can be expensive, currently costing around 60k in Shyla’s shop. For a weapon requiring such a heavy investment, you might want to use player crafted or monster-dropped swords.
Note that the first upgrade requires the Royal Castle Guard Weapon Upgrade Coupon, obtained from the Protect Corrib Valley shadow mission. Passes can be obtained from Pencast by turning in at least average wine made at Lezarro’s winery. If you don’t have a coupon, you can replace the first upgrade with Nerys’ Battle Sword Enhancement but it won’t be as good.
Mace
The 238 mace is for giants who actually care about balance. Boasting 73 balance, hitting capped balance with this weapon will never be a problem. 78 max will deliver heavy damage but there’s no crit, meaning you’ll have to get it from somewhere else.
Warhammer
Both the 180-2 and 200 warhammer are incredibly destructive weapons, boasting powerful max damage and very high crit depending on the path. It comes with no balance, however, and will require around 270 dex with rank 1 combat mastery to cap balance. But once you can hold these with decent balance, you’ll be smashing everything out of your way. As usual, melee elves will likely have a better time holding this weapon.
Iron Mace
Iron Mace is giant exclusive, and it is similar to maces and warhammers. Its damage, crit and balance are between those two weapons as well. Pick your weapon based on your playstyle.
Dragon Blade
This weapon was common at one point during the Dragon Boating event, but it is rarely seen now. It’s a rather average two-handed sword, out of damage, critical, and balance, you get to pick two (the third stat will always be a bit lacking). Unfortunately this weapon does not get special upgrades (if you want to future-proof your gear, then this is not for you). Note that this is the cheapest two-handed weapon to repair, only costing 2823 gold per point at Edern, making it a very budget-friendly sword to use. I do not recommend doing the balance path for this weapon, the highest max damage path already has more than enough balance.
Dragon Fang
One of the two two-handed swords that drops from Fiodh Advanced and theater missions, this one represents raw damage, at the cost of critical rate. There’s not much choice when it comes to upgrading this weapon, all the upgrades pile on damage while ripping out all the base critical, with a high strength artisan as the final upgrade. If you have enough crit, then this sword is for you. Repairs can get pricey, though, coming in at about 13k per point at Edern.
Glory Sword
The other two-handed sword that drops from Fiodh Advanced and theater missions, this sword represents critical rate, while having lower (but still respectable) damage. The upgrades add pure max damage, while the final artisan upgrade adds a whopping 70 luck as its max roll. Critting with this weapon will never be a problem. The repair fee isn’t quite as high as the Dragon Fang, coming in at 8.4k per point.
Soluna Blade
Empowered with the fire of the sun and the radiance of the moon, may this ultimate weapon of destruction show your enemies the meaning of eternal slumber.
During the period where you have medium balance, you can consider holding a high balance weapon like a gladius with a high damage weapon like a broadsword for a decent compromise between combined damage and balance.
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