Parrying Skill Up Limits

[dalton]

My ninja is currently level 56 and parrying had gotten pretty far behind. As such, I'm leveling up my parrying with the hopes that getting it up-to-date at this level will cause me to get at least some skill as I XP toward 75.

To that end, I am fighting monsters of the corresponding level to my parrying skill. Does anyone know what the formula is for determining when a monster will no longer be able to give you ANY skill for parrying? With magic, I would assume this would be "even match" to the skill level, but it seems this may not be the case with Parrying. I'm wondering when I should DEFINITELY move on from a particular set of monsters that I've gotten comfortable with. For example, when I had 140 parrying skill, I was fighting the leeches in Labyrinth of Onzozo. At that point, I moved on to the next mobs, but it seems I went too early.

Please provide your thoughts and/or evidence regarding when I will KNOW I HAVE to move on. Simply waiting hours on end to verify that I will no longer get any skill doesn't seem like a very efficient approach.

Thanks,

Dalton

[Thufir]

Combat skills caps follow according to the level of the monster you are fighting. A level 50 monster would allows you to skill up to what your cap was at 50. An even match mob would always let you cap your combat skill, but defensive skills are notoriously slow to level, just be thankful it's not Guard. You didn't say what your parrying it at so it's hard to tell you what to fight, so I'll just use Onzozo mobs as examples.

The weakest gobs in there are level 46-49, they would allow you to hit skills of 141-150.
Cockatrices are 50-53 and would let you hit 153-168.
The next tier of gobs are 51-58 and would let you cap your skills.

[dalton]

Thanks for the reply. Just to clarify my understanding -

Let's say I was level 50 and capped. I ding 51 and cap goes up. You're saying I'd have to fight at least a level 51 mob to gain skill?

[Jayhawk]

Thanks for the reply. Just to clarify my understanding -

Let's say I was level 50 and capped. I ding 51 and cap goes up. You're saying I'd have to fight at least a level 51 mob to gain skill?

Yes, this is how all combat skills work.

[dalton]

OK, thanks... didn't know that (probably because I usually just skill as I go in parties).

[Howard Roark]

in all honesty u may want to a) keep lvling til 70 or so in order to sub dnc for drain samba 2 and go back and fight those level-appropriate mobs--you're really missing out on a lot of skillups by using shadows

or b) level paladin/[insert any job that gets wailed on in the face consistently]

i'm at 177 parry now, my ninja is 75 and i've never specifically tried to skill it; to be fair i have over 1100 levels so i've gotten parry skills on a variety of jobs, lately it's my 65 samurai that has gotten the bulk of them as im often /dnc either in campaign or duoing with a drg/mage or soloing lessers outside town while seeking

my guard skill is horribly low, 131?, and ive had my black belt for 2 years now however most merit pt's require /nin and i unwittingly kept counterstance up religiously for the longest time, now i purposely leave it off in hopes of winning the lottery, i mean getting a guard skill

anyway good luck, PL mules are your friend but otherwise go /dnc and skip the shadows on mobs without annoying tp attacks (lvl 70 is also nice as you will have access to boxer's mantle as well as parrying torque, earring and 2x sai+1s)

[dalton]

Thanks for the advice.

I just merited my red mage char and get Phalanx II. As of doing that, I don't need shadows at all.

p.s. Double Paeon from a 3rd box helps too

[Wintermute]

in all honesty u may want to a) keep lvling til 70 or so in order to sub dnc for drain samba 2 and go back and fight those level-appropriate mobs--you're really missing out on a lot of skillups by using shadows

or b) level paladin/[insert any job that gets wailed on in the face consistently]

i'm at 177 parry now, my ninja is 75 and i've never specifically tried to skill it; to be fair i have over 1100 levels so i've gotten parry skills on a variety of jobs, lately it's my 65 samurai that has gotten the bulk of them as im often /dnc either in campaign or duoing with a drg/mage or soloing lessers outside town while seeking

my guard skill is horribly low, 131?, and ive had my black belt for 2 years now however most merit pt's require /nin and i unwittingly kept counterstance up religiously for the longest time, now i purposely leave it off in hopes of winning the lottery, i mean getting a guard skill

anyway good luck, PL mules are your friend but otherwise go /dnc and skip the shadows on mobs without annoying tp attacks (lvl 70 is also nice as you will have access to boxer's mantle as well as parrying torque, earring and 2x sai+1s)

Wouldn't 2x Parrying Knives for +20 Skill total be more worthwhile than the Sai?
Sure the Dmg on them is piddly but it's not like you're trying to kill the Mob anyway.

[dawdr]

in all honesty u may want to a) keep lvling til 70 or so in order to sub dnc for drain samba 2 and go back and fight those level-appropriate mobs--you're really missing out on a lot of skillups by using shadows

Ehh, parrying checks right after evasion, and before shadows. You don't get skillups for failing to parry like you do evasion, so using Utsusemi doesn't change your parry rate at all.

[Therin]

in all honesty u may want to a) keep lvling til 70 or so in order to sub dnc for drain samba 2 and go back and fight those level-appropriate mobs--you're really missing out on a lot of skillups by using shadows

Ehh, parrying checks right after evasion, and before shadows. You don't get skillups for failing to parry like you do evasion, so using Utsusemi doesn't change your parry rate at all.

Truth.

[Howard Roark]

in all honesty u may want to a) keep lvling til 70 or so in order to sub dnc for drain samba 2 and go back and fight those level-appropriate mobs--you're really missing out on a lot of skillups by using shadows

Ehh, parrying checks right after evasion, and before shadows. You don't get skillups for failing to parry like you do evasion, so using Utsusemi doesn't change your parry rate at all.

Truth.

ah ok, like i said i havent purposely skilled parrying at any point, my experience lies much more in guard skilling and its inevitable inducing of teeth-gnashing sessions; and @ parrying knives: good call, but again, havent actually sat down to do this

gj on the phalanx2 for the alt (my alt is stuck at 47 as i have trouble taking time away from my own maats cap pursuits), and 2x paeon is a great idea as curing can get the mob's attention off of you

lastly, it may be obvious but hasnt been mentioned, you can add additonal mobs as needed/manageable, just engage a far off mob so as to not kill off the mob(s) giving you potential skillups (although since you've done enough research to have the foresight to have an alt with phalanx2 im sure you know this)

[RKenshin]

Wouldn't 2x Parrying Knives for +20 Skill total be more worthwhile than the Sai?
Sure the Dmg on them is piddly but it's not like you're trying to kill the Mob anyway.

There's a general belief that using a 2h weapon increases your chances to parry a good amount. I tend to believe this to be true as well, and it makes sense seeing as it's definitely easier to parry with a dagger than with a GS or something.

I don't recall it ever being tested for sure, but it's something to keep in mind. I've done most of my parry skill up with a staff anyway though, and capped it around a year ago.

[Howard Roark]

yeah i was trying to skill guard without an alt as mnk75/rdm37 (maybe whm i forget) and was gonna use spirit taker to get mp back with my Thyrusstab when I got a very unexpected parry skill almost right away

also my sam gets them all the time, more than my 75nin does

[BroodIfrit]

From what I noticed, Corsair get a ton of parrry skillups. I did 150-269 in Den of Rancor on COR/NIN.
Brought a RDM friend with me, aggroed all the Pucks in the room and just engaged one and let them wail on me.

Granted I lost quite a bit of EXP this way, but it's not like a Corsair is pressed for party invites.

[Wintermute]

Wouldn't 2x Parrying Knives for +20 Skill total be more worthwhile than the Sai?
Sure the Dmg on them is piddly but it's not like you're trying to kill the Mob anyway.

There's a general belief that using a 2h weapon increases your chances to parry a good amount. I tend to believe this to be true as well, and it makes sense seeing as it's definitely easier to parry with a dagger than with a GS or something.

I don't recall it ever being tested for sure, but it's something to keep in mind. I've done most of my parry skill up with a staff anyway though, and capped it around a year ago.

I'd entirely forgotten about the 2-Handed thing.

When I capped my Parrying on RDM I was also working on Shield at the time so it got capped/levelled pretty much unintentionally.

Last time I tried to skill parry was Thf/Nin with 2xKnives, but I evade to damn much...

Should go give Steelshells another go w/ Staff when I finish my RNG.

[Rags]

MY parry is at 178 and for the life of me I can not skill it at all. I usually go nin/whm and now Nin/Rdm with no luck at all. I have tried different tactics. -30eva, +34 parry skill from gear. Gear with Agi, gear with no Agi. I mix and match gear, use daggers, swords, katanas, great katanas, staffs.

For the most part I have been in The Boyada Tree. I first started by fighting 1 mandy. After awhile I got a little frustrated so I moved it to 2 mandies. Then when that failed moved on to 3 mandies. An for all the parries I did not one resulted in skill. I did the same tactics for the robber crabs starting with 1 crab and moving up to 3 at one time. For the crabs I get them down to 1% then switch to number 2 then number 3. When they are all at 1% I will usually switch to staff and try to kill them with it since it takes me a good number of swings.

If the mobs general lvl allows for a 210-235 level to an "A" stat there should be some skills in ym future. Yet for the life of me I don't see them. I might try and move to Kuftal Tunnel and see what those crabs might give since they are lvl 60-63 which is closer to my parry which id equivalent to a 55 job.

I am always looking for advice ot strats. I mainyl do this killing time before an ls even when I dont have much ime to do anything else. Plus its nice way to gain seals.

[dawdr]

MY parry is at 178 and for the life of me I can not skill it at all. I usually go nin/whm and now Nin/Rdm with no luck at all. I have tried different tactics. -30eva, +34 parry skill from gear. Gear with Agi, gear with no Agi. I mix and match gear, use daggers, swords, katanas, great katanas, staffs.

For the most part I have been in The Boyada Tree. I first started by fighting 1 mandy. After awhile I got a little frustrated so I moved it to 2 mandies. Then when that failed moved on to 3 mandies. An for all the parries I did not one resulted in skill. I did the same tactics for the robber crabs starting with 1 crab and moving up to 3 at one time. For the crabs I get them down to 1% then switch to number 2 then number 3. When they are all at 1% I will usually switch to staff and try to kill them with it since it takes me a good number of swings.

If the mobs general lvl allows for a 210-235 level to an "A" stat there should be some skills in ym future. Yet for the life of me I don't see them. I might try and move to Kuftal Tunnel and see what those crabs might give since they are lvl 60-63 which is closer to my parry which id equivalent to a 55 job.

I am always looking for advice ot strats. I mainyl do this killing time before an ls even when I dont have much ime to do anything else. Plus its nice way to gain seals.

The secret to getting your parrying up decently with speed is to use Chigoes. Gear up Ninja/Red Mage for all the parrying skill and damage down you can get and don't even bother with shadows. Make sure you've got an area of effect weapon skill with whatever you're using, and a magic one preferably, since you could miss with a physical one. Cyclone with a Parrying Knife or Earth Crusher with an Earth Staff both work wonders.

Head to Nashmau, out of the East exit if I remember correctly. There should be four Chigoes off to the right, all along the wall. Starting with one and working your way up to your confidence threshold is what I'd recommend. Don't engage the Chigoes, pick one of the saplings or birds that are around and just stay back where it won't bother you. My guess is you won't be able to get Phalanx up once they're swinging at you without a lot of luck, so when it goes hold up as long as you can and then weapon skill and kill the Chigoes. Lather, rinse, and repeat until you're in the 215 range.

I did a variant of this for my parrying on Thief, only using Warrior as my subjob (yay Defender) and a Spartan Hoplon for Phalanx. I'd gather all four Chigoes and then pull a sapling to keep myself alive with Bloody Bolts. I also used the sheep in the area, though that's a bit more risky since they have Berserk and a Paralyze move.

[Rags]

MY parry is at 178 and for the life of me I can not skill it at all. I usually go nin/whm and now Nin/Rdm with no luck at all. I have tried different tactics. -30eva, +34 parry skill from gear. Gear with Agi, gear with no Agi. I mix and match gear, use daggers, swords, katanas, great katanas, staffs.

For the most part I have been in The Boyada Tree. I first started by fighting 1 mandy. After awhile I got a little frustrated so I moved it to 2 mandies. Then when that failed moved on to 3 mandies. An for all the parries I did not one resulted in skill. I did the same tactics for the robber crabs starting with 1 crab and moving up to 3 at one time. For the crabs I get them down to 1% then switch to number 2 then number 3. When they are all at 1% I will usually switch to staff and try to kill them with it since it takes me a good number of swings.

If the mobs general lvl allows for a 210-235 level to an "A" stat there should be some skills in ym future. Yet for the life of me I don't see them. I might try and move to Kuftal Tunnel and see what those crabs might give since they are lvl 60-63 which is closer to my parry which id equivalent to a 55 job.

I am always looking for advice ot strats. I mainyl do this killing time before an ls even when I dont have much ime to do anything else. Plus its nice way to gain seals.

The secret to getting your parrying up decently with speed is to use Chigoes. Gear up Ninja/Red Mage for all the parrying skill and damage down you can get and don't even bother with shadows. Make sure you've got an area of effect weapon skill with whatever you're using, and a magic one preferably, since you could miss with a physical one. Cyclone with a Parrying Knife or Earth Crusher with an Earth Staff both work wonders.

Head to Nashmau, out of the East exit if I remember correctly. There should be four Chigoes off to the right, all along the wall. Starting with one and working your way up to your confidence threshold is what I'd recommend. Don't engage the Chigoes, pick one of the saplings or birds that are around and just stay back where it won't bother you. My guess is you won't be able to get Phalanx up once they're swinging at you without a lot of luck, so when it goes hold up as long as you can and then weapon skill and kill the Chigoes. Lather, rinse, and repeat until you're in the 215 range.

I did a variant of this for my parrying on Thief, only using Warrior as my subjob (yay Defender) and a Spartan Hoplon for Phalanx. I'd gather all four Chigoes and then pull a sapling to keep myself alive with Bloody Bolts. I also used the sheep in the area, though that's a bit more risky since they have Berserk and a Paralyze move.

I tried this with little luck, But I will give it another go around.

Food: fishcabob
weapon: earth staff -20% physical damage
Head : Arhats Jin -4% Physical def
neck: Parry Torque +7 parry
Ear1: supp, ear2: mermans
body: Arhats gi -6% physical damage
Hands: S. Kote +50hp
ring1: Bomb Core RIng2: Jelly Ring -5% physical damage
Back: Amemets +1
Legs: Yasha
Waist: Warwolf
Feet: Fuma Sune ate

(would you change anything?)

So I have -35% physical damage taken. With protect, phalnax, stoneskin, utsus ni, and food I get a nice boost. This was pretty much my gear last time. At night I pulled 2 chigs to zone with af boots and then let them wack on me while I targeted a bird in the distance.. They really didnt hit me for much but 2 wacking on me took no time at all. 0-11 on normal hits and 21-33 on crits (worthless crit down ><)

For the 2 fights I tried I did parry proc allot but nothing resulted in skill ups. Its kinda sad to go out of your way to level something only to see no rewards for ones effort.

[Indalecia]

Boxers mantle?

Or are you worried about the evasion+ on it?

[dawdr]

You can't expect to ever have the skillups come quickly, it will be a long and tedious thing. They will come, but you have to be patient.

Gear wise, aside from the already mentioned Boxer's Mantle, there's the Parrying Earring too. There's also the Darksteel Harness set, which you could use to up your damage down more, though not a whole lot more.