Knight/Soldier Guide

If you want to have an Uber Knight/Soldier, please read. You won?t regret it. This method works for me, and I?ve tweaked it with nearly 4 months of Epic 4 testing. It?s only a foundation, and must be tweaked with Rings, Earrings and weapons, as well as careful Chest Armor choices. This is meant for people looking at near-endgame builds.

Old School people on Tortus, KTS and US Test know me well as Jiandao. I?ve earned a strong reputation as the "Juggerbish", and as well as being well-known for using very strange PvP tactics. During sieges run by Honor, I was always at the very front; "The Tip of the Spear", as they say. We never lost a single siege. Ever.

For the past few months, I?ve been hiding away on Test Server and Korean lives servers, preparing for Epic 4. Here is the result of that time...


Here are the two ideal builds for Knight;

VIT50%
AGI50%

As a melee class, Knight actually has high enough VIT to take minimum damage on most dungeon mobs, especially with a Tortus buff (+140PDEF). Add the +50%AGI, and he?ll dodge approximately 1/5 attacks. You might say, "That?s not much.", but that reduces the overall damage he takes by 20%. Since threat is easily gained by "Provoke", actual damage output isn?t that important. Be forewarned, this build may require a "Voke-Spam", spamming Provoke to earn threat.

STR50%
VIT25%
WIS 25%

Due to Knight?s already mostrous VIT, it?s nice to counter-balance that with some WIS (MDEF). Knights are sitting ducks against casters, so the added WIS may be just enough to allow them to close the distance without getting instantly dropped. In return, casters are very weak to melee, so a higher STR will work in the Knight?s favor. High STR also means better tanking, and more inventory WGT to carry supplies.



Here are my two builds for Soldier;

[Wearing Holy Armor]

50%VIT
50%STR

In this role, I am a pure tanker, soaking up as much damage as possible, and dishing out as much in return. This is a purely PvE build, and is better suited for dungeons. Soldiers have the same VIT as Knights and take very little mob damage via Offense Breaker, Divine Flash, Judgement Buster and Shinning Crash. Since Shinning Cluster now has no cooldown, most Soldiers need only use Provoke once to keep and hold agro. Again, this is a purely PvE build; useless in PvP.


[Wearing Holy Suit]

STR50%
VIT20%
WIS20%
DEX10%

Now here?s where your Soldier is going to shine. The goal is not to rely on a predefined build, revolving an a specialized trait, but even out the edges and make him more versatile. This build relies more on actual player ability than a build.

By starting with a strong +50%STR on all equipments, you guarantee an ass-whoopin? to anyone who gets within 3 feet of you.

Soldiers have naturally high VIT to begin with, so a Hunter Suit will not reduce his PDEF by much. +20%VIT is good enough to raise his HP into 10K mark [LVL1XX], as well as make up for his armour?s shortcomings. Again, I can?t stress this enough, Soldiers do not need massive VIT; it comes naturally.

Chosing a Hunter Suit will prove to be the wisest choice, especially when fighting casters and summoners. The dominant summoner strategy is to get their pets to chase their opponent around, while they spam MATK skills from a distance. Casters will "Snare/Sleep/Stun + Nuke", then run away. By chosing Hunter Armor and adding +20%WIS, you effectively take much less damage, and have better chances of surviving that first volley. Once that is done, the Hunter Suit?s +10MOVSPD can be put to use; 1. You will close the gap quicker and; 2. It will be very difficult for melee pets to actually catch you.

Another reason for adding +20%WIS to you equipment is because you rely heavily on your ranged spells to stop ranged players from rocking you. Again, casters and summoners have naturally high MRES, so it may be difficult to land spells on them.

In regards to the +10%DEX, this is because you must always have a bow. "Restrain" can effectively cause massive amounts of damage, as well as reduce movement speed by -42% for 10 seconds. It cools in 15 seconds, making it usable very often. It?s instacast, and causes obscene damage, especially when combined with Shinning Cluster. Again, this isn?t a main weapon, but should be available at a moment?s notice if a player is constantly trying to kite you. Pop with Restrain, attack, Judgement Buster, now close the gap while he is stunned.



The above-mentioned builds and tactics are a good foundation to find your own builds. As a rules, you will want to always pour 50% of your Soul Stones into STR for Soldier. Soldier is mainly a damage dealer and debuffer. If you cut out your STR, you become useless to your party, as well as useless to your guild in siege. Some players prefer to be very specialised in one thing, but I feel this is a mistake, simply because versatility is vital to advanced players. Whether you take Holy Armor or a Holy Suit, always remember that no stat is useless.

Soldiers rely more on player skill than on builds and cheap tactics.

Regarding Knights, try and think about soaking up damage over actual damage dealing. People won?t party you if you can?t absorb damage and protect your party.

Rappelz Dungeons and Raids

Dungeon System

Dungeons are isolated places reached through portals. The monsters in dungeons are stronger than normal monsters with the same level, but the experience and job point reward for killing one is also higher. There are also items that can only be obtained as a dungeon drop. Dungeons are usually entered as a party, or dungeon party. Dungeon parties consist of a variety of classes, most including a healer/buffer, a tank, and multiple damage dealers. This enables the party to efficiently kill monsters and gain experience fast. Parties in Rappelz may contain up to 8 players. Dungeons are not instanced, meaning players will be able to interact with other characters and parties inside the dungeon. This also allows for kill-stealing (attacking a monster that was first attacked by another character outside their party, with the intent to 'steal' it away from them and/or receive a portion of the experience gain), and 'training' (pulling a large number of monsters towards another character or party, usually with the intent to have the 'train' of monsters attack them instead, often resulting in the 'trained' party dying).

Dungeon Raid

Rappelz has a feature in place that allows for guilds to 'own' a dungeon. Ownership of a dungeon brings certain advantages, such as a Lak and rupee 'tax' for characters using the dungeon. Acquiring ownership of a dungeon requires two steps. First a Dungeon Raid should be performed. Dungeon Raid is also called Time Attack, and consists of killing the two bosses that guard the specific dungeon. For example, for Relics of Arid Moonlight, these bosses are Oforia and Abhuva. During the Dungeon Raid, the dungeon is instanced, meaning no other player characters will be encountered.

[edit] Dungeons Siege

If the raid succeeds, and manages to kill the bosses in the shortest amount of time compared to Dungeon Raids from others, the guild that performed the raid will move on to attempt a Dungeon Siege. Dungeon Sieges are held once a week on a set time. A Dungeon Siege is a war between a defending guild, the guild currently owning the dungeon, and the attacking guild, the guild who performed the Dungeon Raid. If the siege succeeds, ownership of the dungeon is transferred to the attacking guild. During the Dungeon Siege, the dungeon is instanced, meaning no other player characters will be encountered (with the exception of the opponent parties in the Siege).

Current Dungeons

There are currently four different dungeons available:

• Relics of Arid Moonlight
  • Location: west of Horizon and south of Rondo.
  • Recommended character level: 25 to 50.
  • Dungeon bosses: Oforia and Abhuva.
• Lost Mines
  • Location: north of Horizon and east of Rondo.
  • Recommended character level: 45 to 65.
  • Dungeon bosses: Primal Scream and Taranida.
• Crystal Valley
  • Location: west of Rondo.
  • Recommended character level: 65 to 80.
  • Dungeon bosses: Crustalino and Likirius.
• Palmir Plateau
  • Location: north of Rondo and south of Laksy Anchor.
  • Recommended character level: 80 to 110.
  • Dungeon bosses: Soulseeker and Takin.
• The Temple of Ancients
  • Location: north-west of Rondo
  • Recommended character level: 120 to 150.
  • Dungeon bosses: Betreyal

Rappelz Pets

The Rappelz Reference Guide lists the pets in order of taming chance, using tiers. As of Epic 4, pets from tiers 1 through 3 are considered Basic, and tier 4 pets are considered Rare. Pet cards for pets from tier 1 can be purchased from NPCs, pet cards for tiers 2 through 4 are drop-only items (though sometimes they do appear in the Cash Shop as bonus items on special packages). tier 1, 2 and 3 are all listed as "basic" on their pet cards, however different drop rates and tame rates may put them into different tiers as shown below.

Tier 1 (Basic):

• Pantera: A muscular cat-like creature. It focuses on speed and physical attack.
• Poultry: A red chicken-like creature. It focuses on speed and magic.
• Tortus: A giant tortoise-like creature. It focuses on defense and high hp.

Tier 2 ("Common"):

• Blue Pixie: A small fairy that glows blue. It has cleric-like healing abilities.
• Orc: A Orc-like creature with a club. It is a very popular pet due to its high attack and defense.
• Red Pixie: A small fairy that glows red. It has very powerful magic attack abilities and is known as a great damage-dealing pet.
• Siren: A beautiful humanoid female. It has abilities to debuff and trap enemies.
• Skeleton: A skeleton warrior. Famed as a highly evasive pet, it has fast physical attacks and extraordinary damage-dealing capabilities.
• Yeti: A white yeti-like creature with a mask. It is a favorite of defensive players because it has the highest vitality, hp, and physical defense out of every similar pet.

Tier 3 ("Un-Common"):

• Hawkman: A bird/human hybrid resembling an avain. Its skills and abilities focus on high physical attack and high physical defense.
• Salamander: A red bipedal fire-based lizard. Its skills and abilities are based around high damage dealing potential in both magical and physical areas.

Tier 4 (Rare):

• Angel: An angel-like creature with wings. It focuses on healing with great defensive potential, in contrast to the blue pixie which has very little physical defense.
• Kentauros: A centaur equipped with a spear. Its strength lies in enormous physical attacks and fantastic damage-dealing potential.
• Cerberus: A three-headed dog-like creature. It focuses on extremely powerful physical attacks and high attack speed.

Tier 5 (Unique):

• White Dragon: An ice-themed dragon creature. It is capable of dealing the most damage with its ice magic attacks out of any pet and has a huge defense, making it the most sought after pet in the game. Unfortunately, it is nearly unattainable.

The following pets have been theorized and are rumored to be released in the future: Lydian, Ent, Unicorn, Harpy, Astarot, Windy Pixie, Imp and the Forest Pixie

Classes and Levels

Rappelz features a variety of classes, most of which can be unlocked through attaining a certain character level and job level. Character levels are attained in the traditional way, by defeating mobs and gaining experience points. Besides experience points, defeating mobs also grants the player job points. Job points are required to obtain and level up the character's skills, but also to increase their job level. Most skills require a minimum job level to be unlocked.

As of Epic 4, there are three class categories: starting class, first job class and second job class. After attaining level 10 and job level 10, characters can choose one of the first job specialized classes. At level 50 and job level 40, the second job class can be chosen. For example, the Gaia warrior class, Fighter, can choose between Champion, a melee-oriented battler, or an Archer, who focuses on bow skills. All classes of any race share a single "racial skill" in Epic 4, which grows in power with each class increase. When advancing a character's job class, the job level is reset.

It is also possible to 'overbreed' your character. This means the character is not advanced to a second job class when it reaches level 50, job level 40. Instead, job points are collected to bring the job level up to level 50 as well, before further specializing. Overbreeding gives a character a small bonus to its statistics. Opinions vary on whether overbreeding is worth the amount of time and job points spent.

Deva

The Deva are a light-based race. They also have water- and earth-based skills. They are primarily defense-oriented, focusing on the powers of healing and buffing. Their racial skill is "Minor Healing", which restores HP to the caster.

• Guide - The Guide is the starting class for the Deva. The basic skills Smite and Minor Healing are learned by this class.
  • Holy Warrior - Holy Warriors are the game's primary tank class. They have the highest natural health and defense of the first jobs. They have various skills to force monsters to attack them instead of other party members (most notably the skill Provoke). In addition, they have multiple debuffing abilities, which are continued in the two advanced job versions of this class.
    • Soldier - The Soldier focuses on the offensive aspect of Holy Warriors. They get additional damage-dealing skills as well as the only two holy warrior skills of non-light element.
    • Knight - The Knight focuses on the defensive aspect of Holy Warriors. Focusing on their prowess with a shield, they have additional skills for provoking enemies and the greatest natural defense in the game.
  • Cleric - The Cleric is the main healer/buffer of Rappelz. They have powerful healing spells as well as strong player buffs. They also have several attack and debuff spells.
    • Priest - Priests expand on the Cleric's partying ability. They get extensions on all heals level cap, as well as many "mass buffs" that can affect a whole party. However, many of these buffs are considered broken and worthless because they do not stack with standard buffs, and are nowhere near as strong.
    • Bishop - The Bishop expands on a cleric's offensive casting ability. They get no new healing spells, and have the max level on some of the Cleric spells raised. They make up for it in several powerful debuffs and disable spells.
  • Breeder - The Breeder is Deva's summoner. Breeders have more defense oriented buffs and focus on raising and healing their creatures; they have limited light based damage skills also.
    • Soul Breeder - The second job class of breeders mainly extends their first job skills further.

Gaia

The Gaia are a neutral human race who generally have mix of defensive and offensive skills. Their skills revolve around manipulating the forces of nature. Unlike the Deva and Asura, they do not have a race-specific element, but they have skills utilizing all four "natural" elements (water, earth, wind, and fire). Their racial skill is "Mental Concentration", which increases their critical attack for a short time.

• Rogue - The Rogue is the starting class for Gaia. The basic skills Smite and Mental Concentration are learned by this class.
  • Fighter - The Fighter is the warrior class of the Gaia. Fighters focus on damage skills with two-handed axes, dual-weild axes, or longbows.
    • Champion- The Champion class is the continuation of the melee fighter path. They focus on melee skills.
    • Archer - The Archer is the continuation of the longbow fighter path. They focus on various bow damage skills as well as trapping skills. They also have the unique ability to detect hidden enemies (assassins are currently the only character in the game that can hide).
  • Kahuna - The Kahuna is a melee/caster hybrid class. Their magical attack spells are mostly focused on status effects and often have long re-use times. Their melee damage ability is greater than that of other magicians. They possess a heal-over-time spell as well as several buffs; however, the heal and buff skills are not as powerful as their Cleric counterparts, but are stackable (buffs from Kahunas and Clerics are able to be in effect simultaneously).
    • Battle Kahuna - The Battle Kahuna furthers the Kahuna's melee and damage abilities. They have additional attack skills as well as higher levels of passive attack skills (their base damage is higher).
    • Druid - The Druid focuses on the support aspect of the Kahuna class. They have more spells for disabling opponents as well as greater healing ability.
  • Spell Singer - The Spell Singer is the Gaia pet class. The Spell Singer focuses on increasing the abilities of both the pet and the player, with the summoner itself becoming considerably formidable at melee upon learning to dual wield one-handed axes. It is the only class in the game which lacks a self healing ability but it can heal its pet.
    • Evoker - The Evoker furthers the Spell Singer's abilities.

Asura

The Asura are the dark-element race of Rappelz. They also possess fire- and wind-based skills. They are primarily an offense-oriented race. They have lower health and defense than the other two races, but they also have greater evasion. Their racial skill is "Deep Evasion", which increases their evasive ability for a short time.

• Stepper - The Stepper is the starting class for the Asura. The basic skills Smite and Deep Evasion are learned by this class.
  • Strider - The Strider is an assassin-like class that uses high evasion and attack speed, hitting fast but not particularly strong. They can specialize in blades (swords or dirks) or crossbow.
    • Assassin - The Assassin specializes in twin dirks or swords, and have a large range of offensive melee skills and stealth skills to hide from their enemies.
    • Shadow Hunter - The Shadow Hunter is the second job class of Striders which specializes in crossbows. They have many ranged skills and debuffing abilities.
  • Dark Magician - The Dark Magician uses spells that drain and weaken the enemy. They have many offensive spells and debuffs.
    • Chaos Magician - The Chaos Magician is the second job class of Dark Magicians which concentrates on high damage spells, but has a low defense against physical attacks.
    • Warlock - The Warlock is the second job class which concentrates more on debuffs and curse magic. This makes them more party-orientated because they have less attack power on their own than the Chaos Magician.
  • Sorcerer - The Sorcerer focuses on offense and absolute control of their pets. Sorcerers can exchange HP with their pets and leech their pets' strength.
    • Battle Summoner - The Battle Summoner is an extension of the sorcerer. They have offensive potential in both melee and magic, and more offensive buffs for their pets.