SAM merit options

[IxX3xil3d0n3XxI]

I was wondering what the 75 SAM's choose for Merits.

I was thinking of going 5store TP/5meditate, then maybe max overwhelm as well as GK skill maxed.

I dont remember all of SAM's merits offhand but those are the most worthwhile that i can think of. What did you merit on your SAM? Thank you for the input ^^

[tdh]

Well, I haven't put a whole lot of thought into this, but I have thought about it for when my SAM's Lv.75. According to the Wiki Merit page, here are your options:

Category #1: 10 possible, Max: 5 per
Store TP: Max Merits would be Store TP +10
Meditate: Max Merits reduces /recast by 0:30 sec
Zanshin: Max Merits increases proc rate by 5%.

Category #2: 6 possible, Max: 3 per
Skikoyo: Max Merits gives /recast of 10 minutes
Blade Bash: I think is pretty undesirable, so I wouldn't bother with it.
Ikishoten: Max Merits would give an additional 9% TP per Zanshin hit. Useful if you maxed Zanshin in category #1, but with all possible gear and Sushi not sure caped Zanshin is that useful.
Overwhem: Max Merits would be Atk+15%, this I think is quite useful. Great for /WAR or TA WS.

Again, I'm a SAM45, but personally 3 minute /recast on Meditate seems just fine for me. So I'm not so sure how useful shaving 30 seconds off that /recast would be, but I'm not the one to talk about it. I see the usefulness in Store TP +10 with out a doubt. Add an additional 10 to the existing gear and job traits SAM gets would be real nice! Zanshin might be useful as well, but I've never experienced Zanshin. (I' just returned and haven't touched SAM after the change from Lv.60 to Lv.20.)

I think maxed Overwhelm is worth it, even if just for soloing. I would also like to see added Merits for the two new SAM job abilities. Adding more STR/ACC/Haste to Hasso, and adding higher percentage of Counter for Seigan would be nice.

If I had all the Merit Points and was required to dump them into place right now, I'd probably go this route:

Store TP: Max
Meditate: Max (With info I have now, 30 seconds off Meditate is more important to me than 5% Zanshin. Something I've never "used.")

Overwhelm: Max

I wouldn't spend any more "MP" on Category #2 Merits until I'd done some more work. I don't know how useful Shikikoyo really is, as I can only really think of one use for it. Giving TP to the PLD for Spirit's Within, since at Lv.75 most skillchain partners are keeping up or are waiting on SA timers anyway. I could be wrong.

[Itatchi]

Sam Specific I'm going for are max on Meditate & Store TP - as well as Shikoyo (Share tp) & Overwhelm. I would say toss one in blade bash for claiming purposes.. but they 'fixed' it, and it nolonger has a long-range increment, you gotta be next to the mob.

[eva00r]

Get Store TP, Zanshin and Meditate at 3:4:3 and then Overwhelm, Shikikoyo, Ikishoten at 2:1:3

Ikishoten = pwn 9 more TP per hit, not 9%.

Equip most Zanshin enhance equipments and eat meat (Sis Kabebi) to force yourself to miss and put a lot more in ATK/STR gears. Your TP per Zanshin hit will be 32 TP and Zanshin proc rate will be 75%ish ... start to rape ...

This is better than any other SAM build that I've seen. You will get
1. Super Fast TP
2. Don't care you're going to miss or not, Zanshin proc rate is freaking high.
3. High ATK and STR
4. Share TP once at 15 mins

[Lmnop]

If you can really get Zanshin rate that high... I wanna see this in action.

[Nodachi]

My best advice for SAM merits is. Make sure you get Meditate to the full 5. The rest is all optional as to how you play it. That said though, I highly recomend maxing out Overwhelm as well, if not state that it's a must.


I have for myself:
Maxed Overwhelm, maxed Zanshin, maxed Meditate recast, maxed Shikikoyo, max crit hit, max STR and maxed GK skill. If you were to do the ones I have the order I'd recomend doing them in would be... Meditate > Critical hit rate > GK skill > Overwhelm > STR > Zanshin > Shikikyo.

[Emurei]

Right now I'm sorta playing around with with the Idea of a SAM tank, forth string overall after PLD, NIN, and WAR no special order or anything. And I also thought about an idea of bringing back the good old Rice Ball effect, mainly the shogun riceball.

My merit would consist of Max Store TP, Max STR, Max Crit Rate, Max GK Skill, Max Overwhelm.

Meditate / Zenshin / 3rd Eye
I've haven't decided which would be the most important put merits into Store TP is a given, more TP per hit, and when you get hit. All three has it's pros as a main tank. Meditate extra TP to hold hate with through WS spamming. Zenshin since I'll be dropping most of my Acc gear in favor of Counter / Evasion gear. Or a 20 sec recast on 3rd Eye.

Skikoyo / Ikishoten
Overwhelm is a given, but a but on deciding on these 2 I might have to go with Ikishoten for more TP gain during Zenshin. Skikoyo is great, but with SAM becoming more of a popular sub now and days I doubt that other jobs are going to have a hard time keeping up with us. And not to mention DRKs getting absorb TP. Unless Skikoyo gives us a Hate Spike, points would be better spent on Ikishoten.

Meditate and Skikoyo would be awsome for HNMs for most cases. Even though most of the time I wait in line to get invited to do my WS :/ Skikoyo would help round off everyone's else TP so they can go using your own TP of course.

Zenshin and Ikishoten would probably serve me better in XP parties. Both traditional and TP burns.

And 3rd Eye if you really want to try to tank

I'll probably wait off to tank a few times first to see which is more needed, 3rd Eye cause its running out too fast or Zenshin proc rate if I have trouble with hate.

I also mentioned Shogun riceballs, there are 2 equipment that has the increased riceball effect on them, the AF gloves / AF+1 gloves and a head gear which can't remember the name of it and at work so every good site is blocked except for this one :p The Shogun riceballs under the effect gives us +10 to double attack not sure if it should say 10 or 10%. With both peices of gear on that would double and gives us 20 or 20% which ever or. Now if you have the brutal earring as well. thats a total of say 25% not including the native Double Attack rate and what ever modifiers that SE isnt telling us. So I'm going to say less than 30% double attack rate. So 1 of every 3-4 swings is going to be a double attack. Combined with Zenshin and Ikishoten you'll be swinging like a madman. Wither tanking or DDing.

Guess I'll let ya'll all know when I try it out a few times first. Feel free to try it yourselves ^^

To me, merits are to round off the style of how you play. Don't be a robot and follow everyone's builds, try some out yourself! Don't just think inside the box, think outside of it. And don't just think outside of the box, tare it up!

/Salute
-Em

[Nodachi]

If you're gona focus on tanking you'll want to do Max HP, Crit Hit rate down and Third Eye early on.

I respect thinking outside the box but I just don't see SAM tanking effectively. MNK with NIN sub actually serves as a better tank now :/

[Emurei]

Definately HP Merits and Crit rate down is under some strong consideration. 3rd Eye will be next thing I'll cap out.

Probably going to start of on the low end and tank for Skill up parties on steelshells, gotta build up my parry skill to an effective level.

I have no doubt that SAM can tank the TP Burn parties but I'm more interested in trying out the tradtional set up. Most likely IT demons with a LS party to try it out first when I'm ready, plus that would give me an added advantage.

Its going to take some gear and time.

Though while leveling up SAMs don't have access to merits so I might have to do a "Dry" XP session with out merits to 3rd Eye a few times, and with some non-endgame gear. gotta make sure an "average" SAM can tank like this not a decked out merited SAM, kinda defeats the purpose now that I think about it. This going to be interesting to see if another new path can be open to us on our road to 75. If not I'll just go train some Gobs in the Dunes together and Circle Blade them down, that'll make me feel better

[IfritnoItazura]

gotta make sure an "average" SAM can tank like this not a decked out merited SAM, kinda defeats the purpose now that I think about it. This going to be interesting to see if another new path can be open to us on our road to 75. If not I'll just go train some Gobs in the Dunes together and Circle Blade them down, that'll make me feel better

May I suggest you level "real" (sorry) tank jobs first, if you have not? It could help a lot if your tanking SAM's Evasion and Parrying is already capped, given that SAM has B+ evasion and A parrying, and actually tanking is a far more enjoyable way to skill up than skill up sessions.

[Emurei]

i have a 51 Nin, put on hold right now while I farm the cash for equipment and tools so I can make the 52-75 run with out stopping Also have a 32 PLD probably going to be my 3rd job to 75

Evasion been capped for SAM for about 2 years now, I did alot of pulling duties and kept my Archery and Evasion capped out at the same time. As for my parry skill is already capped as NIN and will probably stayed capped till the mid 60s. My Non-HNMLS lacks tanks so I find myself tanking alot as it is already as SAM so my Parry is supprisingly high ^^ Just a few points away from 200.

and gosh we're off topic right now lol

post your merit ideas! :p

[Nodachi]

Man if you can remotely tank IT Demons in Ule, leme know lol. I personally don't think it's possible without full Physical damage -% equipment, full parry skill, full evasion, crit rate down, hp the works lol. The WARs and DRKs there just hit wayy too hard for us. Granted, I havn't been back there since Seigan was put in place but even then, I'd be scared ;- ;

[Emurei]

That place isnt soooo bad one of my fav place to xp/merit

had to tank a drk demon there once from about 70% down, thf linked pull one of those taurus, used my 2hr on the taurus, and had to tank the rest of the fight after the pld died from doom. Was an interesting moment x_X limping at the end of it but everyone made it out alive! (does not apply to the pld)