Updated Fighter Guide

start off the guide by introducing the basic concepts of being a Shock Wave fighter. If you already know all this, just skip ahead to the build section. Now the first thing you should know about being a SW fighter is that early on you뭨e most likely going to have to do 90% of your leveling solo, unless you뭨e in a decent guild or have friends who are willing to party with you. The truth of the matter is SW fighters bring little to the party early on in the game.

Now that you뭭e chosen to be a SW fighter, be sure to stay true to your build! Don뭪 be afraid to use Shock Wave. As SW is your main skill, you will need to make good use of it. I know at first it may seem it뭩 not worth it because you have to use so many mana potions, but just stick with it and you뭠l find you level much quicker than just attacking monsters one at a time.


 * 1.1 SW Mechanics *
 * 1.1 SW Mechanics *

Now that you뭨e using SW, you뭠l need to develop strategies on how to best fight. Since SW doesn뭪 have great damage compared to other class`s one on one spells, fighting as big a mob as possible is ideal.

As I뭢 sure you뭠l be quick to notice, SW radiates out from you when you cast it in an arc of sorts. This is great for hitting large mobs at a distance because the width of your attack increases as it gets further away from you. Because of this, you will want to try and keep the mob in front of you at all times.

Now as you begin to SW mobs you뭠l notice they tend to want to swarm around you; this is bad for a SW fighter. You뭠l want to try and continually move and SW the mob as you go, always trying to stay ahead of the mob. Don뭪 panic if you get stuck inside of a mob, just be sure you have HP pots at the ready and concentrate on Shock Waving one part of the mob, preferably the weakest monster, to try and burrow your way out.

It is a good strategy to use the keyboard movements (WASD) to fight as you can affectively move and SW without killing your clicking finger. Just be sure you are comfortable with moving your finger up to the number keys to use potions and using the space bar to pick up items.


 * 2. Build *
 * 2. Build *

Here are a few tips before actually laying out the build you뭠l want to follow. The most important aspect of a SW fighter is his ability to critical. This allows him to effectively hit several times the amount of damage he would deal on a normal attack. It is important at all times for a fighter to have his critical rate maxed (at 100).


 * 2.1 Stats *
 * 2.1 Stats *

There is a bit of dispute over the best stat build for a fighter; however, it is commonly accepted that the stats take precedence in this order: Strength > Stamina > Agility, where Intelligence is useless.

Now that said, my recommended stat build is as follows:

full stam every level

BEST BET!

Now this is my recommended build, however; here is another builds that you may want to take a note of:

3 stam 1 str

You뭠l note that I did not mention stats for a two hand fighter build. I would suggest only one point into Two Hand Mastery if you decide at any point to use a two hand weapon (for instance to use a perfect form Ray to X-Form).


 * 2.2 Skills *
 * 2.2 Skills *

I will try to best describe my reasoning behind the skills I chose, however; with no further adieu, here are your skills:

Basic:

One Hand Mastery: 10 Shield Mastery(SM): 10 Increase Accuracy(IA): 1 Increase Dodge(ID): 1 weight

Class:

Holy Armor(HA): 1 Life Up(LU): 1 Brave: 1

Shock Wave(SW): 20 Encourage(Enc): 10 Critical Blow(CB): 20

I would suggest putting points into the skills in the order in which they are listed above. However, be sure to have one point into IA and ID by level 60 and also try to have at least ten points into CB by level 60 so that you maintain a maxed critical rate when you swap out your Avalon rings and necklace for Shades and a Vepress.

A lot of people, me included, might be inclined to put more points into Brave; however, this is not a good idea. Due to the manner in which your damage is calculated, one point into Brave does less damage than one point into SW even though it may have a higher percent of damage added (yes, I know it뭩 confusing). Also CB will give you more damage to your criticals, in the end, making it better than Brave.

Also, some people suggest dropping the points out of Encourage, HA and LU, for the fact that if you뭨e partying with a buffer, they will generally have better skills. However, this is not a good idea unless you plan on partying with a high level buffer almost at all times (I.E. you have a hip attachment or a very loyal friend). I would not suggest this even if you do think you will be partying with a buffer a lot.

Now, if you뭨e even halfway decent at math, you may have noticed that this skill build will only get you to about level 75. 밯hat do I do after that, you may ask. Well by this point if you have your skills as listed above you뭨e going to want to start thinking about your level 90 skills (For you that would be 4 points for Critical Wave and maybe 5 points for Level Booster). My suggestion would be to start putting points into IA and Brave or ID and be prepared to skill them out at level 90.

Level 90+

At level 90, you`ll definitely want to have four points set aside for Critical Wave (CW) as it is far superior to Shock Wave. While the damage may not be much better at first, the rate of attack and range of the wave are much better than those of Shock Wave. Also, if you solo much, I would suggest trying to set aside five points for Level Booster as it will increase your HP by nearly 500; however, you should never invest more than one level into Level Booster.

You`ll want to keep upgrading CW as much as possible as you level. I believe you are able to upgrade it every two levels (though it takes four skill points). Also, note that after level four, Critical Wave takes five skill points to upgrade each level.

Around level 100, you may find it is beneficial to drop your Encourage down to one if you plan on being with a buffer most of the time and investing the points into getting the highest level Critical Wave.


 * 3. Equipment *
 * 3. Equipment *

Now as unfortunate as it may seem, despite the best build in the world, your equipment is what really seals the deal and makes the fighter. Not to say a fighter with a bad build and amazing equips will be able to cut it later on in the game, but especially early on your equipment makes a big difference.


 * 3.1 Weapons *
 * 3.1 Weapons *

One of the biggest factors in being a SW fighter is the amount of damage you deal, and this is most affected by your weapon. I will try and best describe what weapon you should use based on your level range:

Level 1 - 40

Ideally you뭗 want to use a +10 war mace or hammer with added damage on it. However, these can be hard to come by, especially if you뭨e new to this game. That said, just try and get the best one hand weapon with as high damage as you can find. In general, war maces and hammers are going to be what you뭗 want; however, I뭭e seen long swords and broad swords with damage bonuses on them that would be good to use.

Alternatively you can use the highest plus Serkis sword that you can find. These will not generally give you the best damage; however, the added class skill is nice to have. I would say, for instance, that a +8 war mace with moderate enchantments would be equivalent to a +5 Serkis sword.

Level 40 - 60

At level 40 you should look into getting a Secro Sword or an Agon Mace. These will generally be better than the basic weapons and are upgradeable via Enchant Stone Cs.

Level 60 - 70

At level 60 I would recommend upgrading to an Agni Sword as they will give you a good bit more damage. Optionally if you have a Flame Sword you can upgrade to this instead; however, now that the Flame Sword has no skill bonus it`s not quite as good as the Agni.

Level 70 - 80

At level 70 you are now able to equip the second tier Hover Island Weapons. If you have the means to obtain a Red Loutus, it is probably the best weapon for you. Also, at this point you can equip perfect form Ru`s (1H fighter growth weapon). I would not suggest using a Ru before this point as they are not great training weapons, however, if at this point you are able to get a decent stat perfect Ru, you may want to use that.

Level 80+

You can now equip the third tier Hover Island weapons and you`ll want to start looking into getting a Prominence; though they are not easy to come by and I wouldn`t waste too much of my time at this point trying to obtain one. If you don`t have the means, or don`t wish to waste countless hours farming, I would suggest sticking with your Red Loutus or trying to find a good perfect form Ru to use.


 * 3.1 Armor *
 * 3.1 Armor *

Armor is also very important to the development of your character, and it is quite necessary you have the best armor available for your level.

Level 1 - 50

Early on, you will want the highest level armor you can wear, preferably with added defense enchantments on each piece. However, I would not spend much time finding such pieces as most people do not save or sell these armors with the exception of Antique armors.


 * Note that at level 40 you can equip the divine armor, I would suggest trying to obtain a full set of Vira-J; however, it will not be most beneficial until you can upgrade it to +5 at level 50.

Level 50 - 80

My suggestion for these levels would be to use +5 or higher Vira-J armor with the exception of the shield. Since the Vira-J set bonus can be obtained without the shield, I would suggest looking for a better Antique shield; ideally one with added defense and +3 Shield Mastery.

I do not suggest using antique armor even though it gives better defense, the loss of the set bonus given by a full Vira-J set and the decrease of HP makes antique inferior, especially to high plus Vira-J. For the same reason I do not suggest switching to Bone armor at level 70.

Optionally at level 70 you can chose to use a Bone shield which will most likely not give much or any more defense, but it gives you one extra basic skill which can be useful. Also, at level 75, you should switch to an Anima shield.


 * If you`re having problems upgrading your Vira-J to +5 you should take note that the Underwater Sewage boss areas are a great place to get Enchant Stone Ds and if you spend a few hours down there you should have a full set of +5 in no time.

Level 80 - 85

At level 80 you will want to get a full set of Gra. I know it may seem more economical to skip Gra as you will only need it for five levels, but if you plan on actually training for those five levels (i.e. not be power leveled) you will definitely want to get Gra. The class skill and stamina on every piece makes it invaluable.

Level 85 - 90

At level 85 you may want to upgrade to Sacred armor. Even though a recent update to the game has made Sacred armor much worse than it was previously, it is still an improvement over Gra. That said, I would also advise that if it is not easy for you to obtain Sacred armor to wait until level 90 and try to get a set of Storm Sacred.

Level 90 - 100

I would stay stick with Storm Sacred through these levels unless you can obtain, without much problem, a set of Thunder Sacred.

Level 100+

At this point you should be working your butt off to try and get a full set of Voodoo as you will most likely stay with Voodoo until you are ready to be Reborn (level 115 or higher). However, if you are able to obtain a set of Lone Lord Armor by level 110, then by all means use it.


 * 3.2 Accessories *
 * 3.2 Accessories *

Early on, and arguably throughout the entire game, accessories are your most important equipment. Not only can they greatly increase your damage/defense/rates/resistances/etc., accessories are how you will keep your critical rate maxed. Since criticals are a SW fighters biggest ally, we want to keep our critical rate maxed at all time. For your critical rate to be maxed, you need to have all of your critical rates total to 100. As such, you will see all of my accessory layouts such that you have a maxed critical rate at all time (For more information about criticals, see the links section).

Level 15 - 60

I start the accessories from level 15 because that뭩 the first level you can wear Avalon accessories. For this level range you should always strive to wear the highest plus Avalon you can find. This goes for each accessory: rings, necklace, and pendants. This will give you the best damage, and most importantly it will keep your critical rate maxed.

Level 60 - 75

At level 60 you should swap out your Avalon rings and necklace for Shade rings and a Vepress necklace. Also, once you have maxed Critical Blow, you will only need to use two Avalon pendants to keep your critical rate maxed, for the third you may chose to use an anti pendant. Also, if you have another item that gives critical rate you may chose to get rid of more Avalon pendants. For example, say you have a Red Loutus which gives around 40 critical rate. This would mean you can drop both of your Avalon pendants and use whatever else you may choose.

Level 75 - 85

At level 75 you will want to swap out any anti pendants for Frill pendants (still making sure you have enough Avalon to keep your critical rate maxed). Also at level 80, you may optionally switch to Avalon rings which generally have better stats than Avalon pendants and instead use Petunia pendants. Also I have not tested using Hermod rings in the place of Shades; however, if you did this I would recommend swapping out any Frills you might have with Petunia뭩 to cover the loss of defense. It may also be noted that you can play around with any combination of Frills and Petunias to see what you like best, as Petunias will give you added defense at the loss of some Strength and Agility.

Level 85+

Well from here on out the only accessories left are Material and Jakiel accessories. If you are lucky enough to get your hands on these, use them. Also, take note that if you have two Material or two Jakiel rings you get a set bonus of 50 critical rate which would mean you could swap out any Avalon accessories you may be using to keep your critical rate maxed.


 * 4. Leveling *
 * 4. Leveling *

I am often asked "Where should I be leveling?" It뭩 hard to peg exactly where someone should be leveling, as it all depends on what your build is, what equipment you have, and your fighting style in general. So bellow I have comprised a list of where, in general, you should be leveling; however, I encourage you to play around and find what뭩 best for you. Also, keep in mind that since a SW fighter뭩 main attack is an area of effect, training at the place where you get the best experience per kill may not always be the best idea. Never underestimate your ability to quickly kill a mob of lesser experience monsters in order to gain experience quicker.


 * Note: The following leveling guides for under level 60 were made before the advent of Ram Ram. Now that you can purchase scrolls from Ram Ram with cro up until level 60 you should be able to level at the hardest place available all the way through level 60 (with the exception of perhaps Lava Stone).

Level 1 - 15

Early on you뭨e going to want to train in the areas surrounding Castle Cronous. It뭩 not a big deal this early on as you뭠l gain experience quick enough no matter where you뭨e leveling. Have fun exploring around Castle Cronous finding places to level.

Level 15 - 30

Around level 15 (again this is all dependent on equips and what you뭨e capable of, and will differ from person to person) you뭠l want to make the move to Sittis Terra. You should probably start off just around the castle and work your way up to harder places like Purica Pathway and Temple Road. Somewhere around level 20 or 25 you뭠l want to try Cavus and by level 30 you뭠l want to be trying Montanus if you can handle it.

Level 30 - 40

You should spend the entirety of these levels in Montanus working your way up from the first to the fourth floor finding your comfort zone as you go along. Also, note that the level requirement for Terra and Chakras has been lowered to 37. I would not advise going here though unless you know what you뭨e doing or you뭨e in a party.

Level 40 - 50

From level 40 to 50 you should be in Terra/Chakras. Once you feel confident with Terra move up to Chakras (usually around level 45). Also, note that the level requirement for Kaineus has been lowered to 47. I would not advise going here though unless you know what you뭨e doing or you뭨e in a party.

Level 50 - 60

For the most part, you should spend your time in Kaineus. As with the previous two sections, the level requirement for Unos has been lowered to 57, so again I wouldn뭪 advise going there unless you have a party or know what you뭨e doing (and by that I mean this probably isn뭪 your first character and you뭭e most likely got the best equips for your level). Also, this is the first level range where you can be effectively 뱎ower-leveled? Power-leveling essentially involves you sharing experience with a higher level player as he kills for you and you get more than the usual experience. This can be achieved at the Montanus boss room, Alter of Blood (AoB). However, I petition you not to beg every high level player you see to level you in AoB. It gets to be very annoying. Be grateful if someone offers.

Level 60 - 70

If you are soloing, you뭨e going to want to spend the majority of these levels in Unos and Malus Ora. Again, stick to where you feel comfortable, at this level both places offer decent experience. At level 65, if you뭨e in a guild or just have nice friends to help level you, Madravas/Lava Stone and Pranal offer the best experience you can get at your level. Also at 60 you may enter the Forgotten Pathway (abbreviated FP). This will by far be the best experience you can get util level 80; however, you will need a party with a buffer, savage, and at least two valks. Being a SW fighter, you will bring little to the party at FP, so I would not suggest wasting all of your time trying to find FP parties.

Level 70 - 80

At 70 you should be soloing at Malus Ora by now. If you feel up to it, you can try to solo at Madravas. By level 75, you should be able to solo at Madravas without too much difficulty. Again, if you have a party, you may go to Pranal/Lava Stone and at level 70 you can enter Hollid and of course if you can find FP parties stick with them.

Level 80 - 85

Madravas should be pretty easy for you to solo now, and for soloing you should be looking to go to Pranal. You can now party to Hollid and Amara. Also, now you can go to Hover Island. While I would not suggest trying anywhere in Hover by yourself, this is another time where you can be "power-leveled." If you have the means to get to the River of Ordeal and friends willing to help, you can be power-leveled there.

Level 85+

At 85 you can go to Hidden Village (HV) and Entice. If you are not in full Sacred at 85 and have either a Prominence or a perfect form Ru, I would not suggest trying to Solo Hidden Village. You can look for parties to HV and Entice. At level 90 you should have Critical Wave by now and this will help greatly in Entice at the Cliff areas. So start looking for parties at Entice with a Support Savage and other Critical Wavers. You`ll probably be bouncing back and forth between Hidden Village and Entice all the way up to 97.

Level 97+

At level 97, you can now enter Castle Pans (from Entice). Here is where you will spend most of your time from now on leveling. You`ll be looking for parties to kill fairies. I hope you like pink fairies... you`ll be seeing a lot of them.


 * 4. Conclusion *
 * 4. Conclusion *

I hope you뭭e enjoyed the guide and taken out of it a better knowledge of Shock Wave fighters. Please feel free to comment, ask questions, and make suggestions. I will try to keep the guide up to date as best as possible.


 * 4.1 Special Thanks *
 * 4.1 Special Thanks *

I would like to extend a special thanks to:

Omni - My guild, you`re awesome guys. My two brothers and friends I뭭e made - I probably wouldn뭪 still be playing this game if it wasn뭪 for you. Xain - For paving the path for the rest of us. BlackDiamonds & Bootz - Thanks for having us in your union, I think we`re going to have a lot of fun.


 * 4.2 Links *
 * 4.2 Links *

Xain뭩 Shock Wave Guide to 80: http://www.cronous.com/web/forum/board.asp?bcode=6&category=3&curPage=7&seq=1632&title_seq=6&forumPage=2

In Depth on Criticals: http://www.cronous.com/web/forum/board.asp?bcode=6&category=3&curPage=25&seq=2616&forumPage=1&title_seq=2

Old Shock Wave Guide: http://cronous.neofun.com/web/forum/board.asp?bcode=6&category=3&curPage=4&seq=3855&forumPage=1&title_seq=6

1.0 - Original Version 1.1 - Made some minor updates based on other`s input, and corrected some grammatical and spelling errors. Currently linked to by Old Guide link above. 1.2 - Updated Skills, Leveling, and Equips section for up to level 100. Updated various sections to reflect changes made to the game system.
 * Version Notes*
 * Version Notes*

THIS GUIDE IS VERY NEW (UPDATED 2012 JULY 27)