This is pt2 to Pvp tips from 500+ hours of playing ao
In this discussion I’ll be going more in-depth on tactics and skill combinations per class.
Mage
After dark sea update mage is now more up to par with fs and weapon classes some might say mage is better and is the best class currently. I’d like to note that the casual and competitive pvp worlds are very different as to perspectives on pvp. I think more competitive players would agree that most classes are pretty balanced rn and that mage is not as op as it seems still incredibly viable though. More casuals would say that surge is op but surge comes with great risk when used carelessly. Let’s strike the iron while it’s hot and get into tactics with surge, what situation is surge most useful and least useful? Surge is most useful after a grab cooldown with the reason being that the best counter to surge is either being far away from it or be close enough to land a grab. A rlly good combo ive seen is to snare players downward into surge and u can easily do 700+ dmg. Slow magics are now alot more viable with algorithmic stat change and higher stat potential with new gear and gems. This allows GIANT sized magic to overwhelm players, especially magic that causes rubble like earth and metal after a couple of attacks you will not be seeing shit I tell you it’s ridiculous… I’d say the best counter to atk size builds are really high atk spd builds that can take them out from afar. Very skilled players that use high dmg atk spd builds usually end up out performing the rest of their piers which makes sense theirs way more room for error with atk spd but also alot more reward.
Weapons
Teleport moves used with katana and scimitars are great for countering players at close and for close combat in general. The best counter to this is beast instinct, beast instinct is great because you clip players as they pass through, all while with out getting hit. You can sometimes grab players if u catch them in certain frames during these teleport moves or use self explosion, but these are alot harder to time than beast instinct.
Most competitive players know you can teleport or use grab moves to close the distance to players quickly even if it doesn’t land.
Fstyle
Fstyles require a certain tempo against more wary players because they know how dangerous you are at close.
Use shot to make them aware that you can keep pressure even if it’s from very far but still a reasonable distance.
Being on point as a fstyle user is important you can quickly fall behind in a fight if your not applying pressure.
Whiffing moves like rush can be pretty devastating as now you are close to your opponent and very easy to punish.
Try to be very precise and patient as fstyle user opening and chances to punish endlag will come but you have to be quick to capitalize on them because if you take to long not only do you miss a chance to get on offense but now you have to defend against another sequence of attacks.
Now using magic with hybrids like warloc and conjurer are pretty similar using beams to hit scan and using placed explosion, blasts and such to do quick additional dmg. I recommend using single beams over double beams they have less endlag and use double placed explosion because placed explosion alr has tons of endlag so getting the extra dmg out of it is worth it.
Warlord
This class is a special kind of devious especially in a skilled players hands. They usually deal TONS of damage often in the 250-350 range, 1700 minimum health if not more and crack head like atk spd. They are very hard to punish there moves don’t have much endlag and the only way to beat them is to intercept their movements and catch them on the fly as they’re aggressively pressuring you know matter if they’re far or close to you. The best counter I’ve seen to warlord are weapon users who know how to use beast instinct to counter their ambitions to clap ur health at close. Also people who also use high atk spd builds that can run and chip their health away(if your exceptional at aiming guns are a great option). Fighting a competent warlord is a nightmare very little room for error you should think to be well equipped with a good strategy before engaging a fight with these kinds of people. If your a novice warlord build your character to your liking but you can’t go wrong with using the current meta out there being 80+power 800+defence atleast 60-70 atk spd. Other stuff is preference, but this will make you go very far.
Some bonus tips are to charge your energy in between dodges to maintain energy efficiently. Play you’re build to it’s strengths if your a poison mage don’t try to over compensate for your low damage affinity lean into it’s strengths by getting a good amount of defence and sub stats like size and intensity.
In conclusion I’d like to put emphasis on the unique use of beast instinct to clip aggressive playstyles and how atk spd is king of pvp in the hands of skilled players.
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