Ranger with Dark Knight subbed?

[Mithrael]

For me at DRK55/WAR27:

Base Attack: 299

With Berserk: 373
Berserk: 25%

With Last Resort: 343
Last Resort: 15%

Berserk is usable 3 out of every 5 minutes, while last resort is usable 20 seconds out of every 5 minutes. Berserk garners almost no hate, while Last Resort has almost as much hate as a provoke.

Ranged attack is a hidden stat, so it's hard to say how much you have, or if last resort and the DRK Physical Attack Up passive abilities would even affect ranged attack, but if it did:

LR(attack + 2x attack bonus) > berserk(attack + 1x attack bonus)
1.15(x + 20) > 1.25(x+10)
x < 105

So basically, DRK would only provide higher Ranged Attack for you if your ranged attack was less than 105. If I had to guess, I'd say your ranged attack is probably higher than 105 at lv.60 though. Since DRK and WAR have equivalent STR as a sub at lv.59 (calculator doesn't show any higher), I'd have to say for sheer damage, WAR is still the way to go.

Edit: Regarding use of the Absorb-??? Spells, on a leveling mob: They'd never land. They get resisted by I.T. Mobs for DRKs with capped dark magic skill with dark magic skill+ bonus from AF helm, there is no way it's going to land with 1/2 of the dark magic skill. Besides, Absorb-STR is the only one that would increase your output, and that's not available as a sub until they raise the level cap to 85.

[Macht]

Yes, Last Resort has a somewhat lower attack boost then WAR does. Again hitting those high numbers in Attack the higher you go the further you are just screwing the max potential damage, in the end making a very high potential with very little chance of reaching. In the end when you push that attack up that much it will only start to make a noticable 3 - 5 damage difference, to me not big enough to conserne myself with. The other thing to the debate is you're basis all knowledge on only what is visible evidence that can be achieved by looking at the equipment menu or reading it's description.

Already it's been proven that the descriptions given are not complete and do not really detail an abilities bonuses completly. For all we know Last Resort may also give a benefit of an accuracy bonus, and attack + accuracy bonus is more then reason enough to shorten it's time span so horridly. It would also explain why when I couple this with Barrage and Sharpshot I've done noticeable greater amount of damage then a /NIN in that shot and can keep that damage more consistent. Were as a RNG/NIN which I've partied with 4 or 5 times in the past with barrage their attack ability with it would vairy wildly.

As for the Absorb-??? of course I didn't intend it's use to be on the IT monsters. The idea was standing consistent with starting with EM, Tough, or VT monster to chain to an IT from start and continuing from there. The weaker monster you should have an easier chance to absorb, using the spell just before that weak monster dies to get the boost and then using that boost to assist you against the harder monster you face seemed reasonable to me.

At higher levels dealing with those weaker monsters shouldn't be much of a problem at all, and seems to give a better start in the chain using a weaker and quicker to kill so you can get in an IT immediatly after without even having to think of the mages MP at that point. Yeah, you loose the ability to a chance of weakening the IT you are facing but like you already pointed out the chance of that spell working on an IT is next to none.

[Timoham]

Even IF last resort gives accuracy (which I don't really think it does, a DRK friend of mine would argue that it takes away accuracy ), it would only give melee accuracy and not ranged accuracy. Another thing, I seriously doubt that a level 37 DRK could land an Absorb-??? spell on a level 70 mob, an EP to a 75 RNG. RNGs don't get dark magic ability and ALL of it comes from the subjob, meaning you're doing your spells like a level 37 DRK.

[Mithrael]

Of all of the things i've ever heard or seen myself in one year of playing the game, the idea that Last Resort might give an accuracy bonus is by the least likely... What it does give is an asston of hate, which is the last thing you need if you're a ranger.

I will say that last resort, like boost, seems to have the hidden effect of increasing weapon skill damage beyond what you would expect for the increase in attack. I still think it's a total waste to give up WAR for DRK as a RNG sub.

And yeah, Timohan hit the nail on the head. You'll never land Absorb-AGI on an Even Match crawler at lv.74. Absorb-AGI would be the only reason you'd ever want to sub DRK, since you'll never have access to Absorb-STR. Even if you could land Absorb-AGI, does anyone really start an EXP chain with an even match? Even if you did, it'd be gone before the second fight, Absorb spells decline over time and wear off completely after about one minute.

[TaruSGonEWilD]

I actually saw a rng/drk a while back and I grabbed him for my PT in valkrum cause its always nice to have a rng in valk and I love watching rngs do the stuff they do. I have to say that I almost decided to not go rng ever after I saw that combo. The dmg and accuracy was gimped considerably from a rng/war or rng/nin. It was pretty bad, I just can't see a rng/drk being able to keep up with a rng/war or rng/nin its interesting to see and test new combos, but I can tell you that this one isn't one that works very well. :sweat:

[Baramunk]

No offense meant, but you really can't see what subs are going to work for a job in Valkurm(Except maybe a WHM subbing WAR which is just... oy -_-). It's really not until about level ~40 jobs start coming into their own and that changes in subs will make a noticable difference. In my opinion, DRK would be a horrible sub compared to WAR or NIN. Passive attack boosts are for Attack, not Rng. Attack. Last Resort doesn't give accuracy boosts nor does it take accuracy away, but even if it did either of those two, that has nothing to do with Rng. Accuracy. Berserk is far superior to Last Resort, and to activate Souleater as a RNG at 60+ is extremely stupid as you're already collecting an enormous amount of hate throughout the fight. I'm not sure just how powerful Souleater is when you sub DRK but as main it takes 100+HP away to add to your attack, and that's something RNG don't really need nor want ^^

[Wretch]

I party'd with a ranger taru who had dark knight subbed... He hit suprising for about 10-15 more than I did, so it definately works.

[Mithrael]

I'm not sure just how powerful Souleater is when you sub DRK but as main it takes 100+HP away to add to your attack, and that's something RNG don't really need nor want ^^

I think 5% instead of 10 (or 15 with AF Helm), but Souleater doesn't work with ranged attack anyway, so you may as well sub /WAR and just provoke to get the same effect