New to PLD

[Grym]

Been a career RDM for 4 years, finally decided to level PLD and BLU to 75 also due to gear and merits it seems to be a wise choice to do those 2. (WHM BLM BRD too but rather give those a miss)

At the moment PLD only 40, and I am currently researching into HP vs VIT vs Def vs enmity.

For the first 30 level, I pretty much just loaded up on VIT as there isn't really much choice, but as it hit over 40, gear choices starting to increase and I am looking at different gear choice other than just VIT. Have 2 PLD friends giving me totally different advices, 1 told me to turtle up on Def and Vit and get some of the VIT pieces on AH like the IM Helm and such, where as the other friend told me don't bother loading up on VIT as the effect it has is minimal.

The second friend told me to as long as I have over +10 VIT I should just stop loading up on it, and use Voyager Sallet over the IM Helm. And told me to get the new Gothic Gloves and Boots combo from Casket (took a while but got them).

What I am looking into at the moment is VIT vs Def, or the general usefulness of VIT (if at all), and also is there a "too much enmity"? I am using Dash Sash (+2 enmity) and Resentment Cape (+2 enmity) at the moment at 40, as soon as I hit 43 I will use the Gothic boots and gloves for extra +4 enmity and thinking of using Mermaid Ring for another 2 enmity on top over a VIT ring (isn't much ring choice other than VIT til Hercules), is that too much enmity? As sometimes I still lose hate when PT with trigger happy SAMs, can get hate back but I rather not lose them in the first place ^^;

[Shinryuu]

Eh depending on party set I'd be more inclined to mix enmity and raw DD gear. 2x gothic is good. Your second friend is dumb, by the way. "Over +10 VIT" is really uh, vague (e.g. not true). However, your first friend is even dumber, turtle PLDs aren't going to hold hate and don't contribute much to the party in terms of killing the mob (faster kill in general means more exp/hour).

[Antec]

I would use high breath mantle for back. It's pretty good for exp, can reuse between pulls every 30min. Just make sure not to swap it out. I carried 2 around on exping PLD just in case i had to zone or if I died or some other issue. I would use it until amemet+1 at 61.

Also i would stick to dd based gear that raises acc, like woodsman rings, peacock charm etc. Put in shield skill+ gear where you can and some enmity+ is good too.

[Demosthenes]

Eh depending on party set I'd be more inclined to mix enmity and raw DD gear. 2x gothic is good. Your second friend is dumb, by the way. "Over +10 VIT" is really uh, vague (e.g. not true). However, your first friend is even dumber, turtle PLDs aren't going to hold hate and don't contribute much to the party in terms of killing the mob (faster kill in general means more exp/hour).

Turtle PLDs are fine pre 60. Post 60 is when you should really start looking at other options. Though it is still easy to turtle post 60 you wont be contributing much to the party aside from being a sponge for damage.

Edit:

ENM+ gear is always a plus.

[Shinryuu]

Yeah I agree with HBM.

Basically just some gear:

DD-based: Haubergeon, PCC, Woodsman x2, Life belt and swift belt, Voyager sallet or Valkyrie mask, republigar until r.k. breeches, fourth hands, and always the best damaging sword (TM Espadon at 50 springs to mind, for instance)
Enmity-based: Gothic set, AF head (simply because other headpieces don't do a lot, see what you like best), HBM
Shield: Buckler earring, AF feet

[Araelus]

Enmity+ gear will cap at +100 but that's not really an issue, is it?

In terms of the hate loss and regain, the best info there is comes from the usual:
Kanican - Enmity Table (Curing)
Kanican - Enmity Table (Curing)
Kanican - Enmity Table (Damage Taken)

[Bregor]

Pack on as much enmity/shield gear as you can, VIT, def and even HP/MP gear are ok, they really do very little but there aren't a whole lot of other options until you hit lesser colibris. By that time there are enough good DD gear choices that you can make the transition. Stick with AF feet and Buckler Earring, but everything else should be accuracy/attack.

[Max™]

Vit sucks.

Every 4 points of Vit you have over the target monsters Str roughly reduces it's base weapon damage by 1.

Whoop de motherfuckin' doo.

Def is broken, when you have like twice a monsters Def, you reduce it's pDif rolls drastically, but if it is 5~8 levels higher than you, level correction stomps a mudhole in your Def lead and makes it like you have 25% more Def than he has Att or some shit. Yay.

Enm and killing is the only way you will keep hate besides a JA rotation and curespam.

Personally, I've soloed Pld to 71 outside of like a lvl 35 party and a lvl 47~49 party, because I know a Pld is generally slower than just having DD's bounce tank, and would rather FoV/Campaign than tank for a bunch of people who don't know Pld = slow exp.


Guy last night says "dude, you won't slow this party down, mobs die in 30 seconds."
'if mobs die in 30 seconds, you don't need a tank, much less a Pld.'
"Gah!"

[Unstable]

PLD has an A+ in sword skill it can do decent damage and good Acc, D sushi is your friend has +enmity and like 20% acc.

[Max™]

Yeah, but Pld damage compared to War is like... /sadface, and the job before this was me leveling War and tanking 95% of my parties with another DD.

[Corrderio]

Around when you get in ToAU camping spots you'll want to start using some accuracy gear over tanking gear. Although you could probably get away using a woodman ring or two @ 40 though.

Just remember if you do a hybrid DD/tank set on PLD Shield Skill+ gear (Buckler Earring, Shield Torque, and AF Feet) should always get priority. Since with shield mastery you can get TP at a decent rate just by blocking with a shield at higher levels.

[Grym]

There is limited shield skill gear out there, got the earring already, too low for AF and torque, and I think that's it for shield skill gear.
Sold a bunch of VIT gears (well, trying to, still on AH) after reading response and bought loads of DD gear instead, still trying to get the Voyager Sallet atm, will see how it goes, while most PLD tell me to go for it 1 friend still against the idea of me trying to be DD PLD, but I will give it a try see how it goes anyway.

[eva00r]

No don't even think about full timing Voyager Sallet. Even if you think you can go DD, don't ignore your def like that. DEF has its own use, and its really important at lower levels since the game calculates damage taken with enemy's attack / your defense.

My comment is to focus on DD gears that also gives decent def and/or vit. After lv 40, you can try PLD/DNC instead of /WAR if your party has single mage and no refresher. It's THAT amazing.

[Araelus]

Isn't it acceptable for Grym to use the Sallet as a WS macro piece, though?

Regarding PLD/DNC, a question for my benefit, too - will you gain enough TP to stay alive in the setting eva00r describes before endgame Haste/OAT/Acc+ gear? I can imagine Shield Mastery adds quite a bit, and I know about Campaign, but that's neither here nor there. Thanks.

[Demosthenes]

Odd that everyone is so adamant about DDPLD. I've yet to be in a party with a DDPLD that was worth my time.

[Cadsuane]

Me too. From level 20-45 I wore evasion gear instead, heh. DDPLD instead of turtling is more of a way to substitute one useless paradigm for one that's only kinda sorta useless. Which is not to say it's something you shouldn't be doing, but its value as a build is probably overstated. Though, a WS swap will eventually give you some nice numbers with vorpal blade for sure.

[Tricen]

DDPLD doesn't really work when you hit colibris :/. Although, after 33, but before 54, you can try some DD action, it's not bad tbh. Depends on what you lvl on though, triple bats can suck MY BALLS.

[Zoolander]

Yea Idk what you guys are EXPing on where DD PLD is the way to go....every now and then I'll do it if I'm tanking VTs but I mean you lose a lot of damage mitigation going for pure DMG for mediocre results...you are talking about it like its the same as DD NIN, which really loses nothing by full timing berserk and DD gear.

Idk, colibri I found best to just load enmity and defense and hold hate the entire fight so the other DDs can sub shit like /war or /sam, use food and not lose any of their TP. Is it better than a pure cannon? Of course not, but I mean I've still get 10-15k doing it which beats soloing lol...get fuck tons of invites so I don't know where Max is getting this grim outlook at its like a parties death to have a PLD. There are benefits...it might not be the best but whatever, so you get 12k instead of 15k...

Either way, I would carry around some different gear choices so you can fit the needs of the party. If you can DD, then go for it. But having only DD gear or only heavy tanking gear would be a mistake.

Edit: I'm talking about Lesser Colibri and Colibri, not lvl 75 merits just to be clear.

[Corrderio]

No don't even think about full timing Voyager Sallet. Even if you think you can go DD, don't ignore your def like that. DEF has its own use, and its really important at lower levels since the game calculates damage taken with enemy's attack / your defense.

My comment is to focus on DD gears that also gives decent def and/or vit. After lv 40, you can try PLD/DNC instead of /WAR if your party has single mage and no refresher. It's THAT amazing.

This, I wouldn't worry about a DD Head until you can equip a Valk/Walk Mask. You could probably get away with using 2x Woodsman Rings @ 40 to.

[Max™]

Isn't it acceptable for Grym to use the Sallet as a WS macro piece, though?

Regarding PLD/DNC, a question for my benefit, too - will you gain enough TP to stay alive in the setting eva00r describes before endgame Haste/OAT/Acc+ gear? I can imagine Shield Mastery adds quite a bit, and I know about Campaign, but that's neither here nor there. Thanks.

I've rocked Pld/Dnc in Garlaige at like 46~49 or so, killing bats (lots of 2 bat fights), and beetles, only lost a member when we got a beetle + 2 bats (and the Whm moved as I covered them to boot, else I might have been able to pull it off).

Shield mastery is hax, seriously, you can spam waltz 1 for hate and to keep yourself topped off and save a lot of MP. I didn't have a refresher for most of the party and it was cake.


If you are going to party on Pld, try to kill as hard as you can, Def is helpful to an extent, but don't sacrifice killspeed to try and turtle, because you'll end up pulling less hate. This is coming from someone rocking 4 Enm merits, high breath, gothic hands, mermaids, sattva, and other pieces with Enm on em at whatever level.

DD's build a lot of hate, and lose none until they start getting eaten.

If you're soaking damage by turtling, and holding hate, the party is going slower than if you were contributing more damage unless you're way overhunting.

If you're way overhunting, you're getting 6k/hr tops, I can do a lot more in FoV, and 5k/hr in Campaign, so funk dat.

If you're underhunting and turtled up, you'd speed exp by killing more, or curing better, not trying futilely to hold hate.


Also: I'm not saying it is bad for the party, I'm saying it's bad for my sanity, Pld tanking in exp is negative fun, I'd rather level solo is all.