Phalanx II

[hongman]

Re: Phalanx II

Slow II I love. Elegy and Slow II landed = mob that just stands there getting beaten to a pulp.

In my case (and understand every RDM's careers are different)

Para II doesnt get cast all that much in Meripo anymore, mobs die too quick.
Para II doesnt land/proc on the big stuff
Solo, Ice Spikes + Af2 pants is MUCH more potent.
Phalanx II mitigating 22points of damage over the course of 1+hours is a huge amount

Its funny coz a little while ago I was arguing the exact opposite But in my defense, my LS's tanks have asked for this, and in my reasoning, it seems far more useful for me to merit Phalanx2. Plus, all the RDM's in my LS seem to be meriting the same thing.

[hongman]

Re: Phalanx II

Before I rip out all my merits though, I want to test how Para I and Para II fare against each other on the same mobs. Ill this in meripo.

[Taskmage]

Re: Phalanx II

I think that really, comparing the 3 spells side by side is meaningless. The much the way we choose subs or roles in parties in our early-mid levels, the best combination of merit spells is whatever fills in the gaps in your shell. 5 rdms casting pimped out Slow II on a mob aren't any more effective than one doing the same thing. Redundancy = waste.

[WishMaster3K]

Re: Phalanx II

Agreed. All I do in Merits nowadays is cure anyway. Won't stop me from meritting Enfeebling though.. Those level caps *cough* CoP *cough* are a bitch and a half, but seem easy with only +6 enfeebling... Interesting..

[Callisto]

Re: Phalanx II

I think that really, comparing the 3 spells side by side is meaningless. The much the way we choose subs or roles in parties in our early-mid levels, the best combination of merit spells is whatever fills in the gaps in your shell. 5 rdms casting pimped out Slow II on a mob aren't any more effective than one doing the same thing. Redundancy = waste.

I totally agree, another reason for my chosen setup, as most RDMs I play with have Dia/Bio III if needed, but as I have the highest Enhancing Magic I like having Phalanx II at level II to buff up the PLDs(and DRG tanks when I do DRG burn!).

[WishMaster3K]

Re: Phalanx II

Just put merits into Dark, whydoncha, Callisto!?!?!?

RDM/DRK NAZI!!!!

[Raydeus]

Re: Phalanx II

What happened to all the talk about how good Para II was compared to all the other merit spells?

I guess it was all just to justify having spent merits on it, eh?



PS > In the end you should merit whatever you feel will help you the most, if Phalanx II will help you more than Para then go for it. Just pretend you never got those merits you used on Para.

[WishMaster3K]

Re: Phalanx II

Well Para II is very awesome. But put it in perspective:

EXP/Merit mobs don't stay alive very long to merit (pun intended? maybe) it's usefulness, and end-game mobs usually resist our enfeebles anyway.

And now, if we were to go to one of the older camps (Ie, Lufaise or Sky), the melee would be blowing huge chunky holes into the mobs, so it wouldn't last long there either.

And if we were to go to a lvl capped event, it wouldn't be available for our usage.

I only see it being used in maybe KSNM99 that aren't BCNMed versions of HNMs, like maybe some uber hard lizards or something..

All in all, based on the current metagame, it's functionally situational even though it's a very useful spell. Not worth it's 120,000 exp though..

[Taskmage]

Re: Phalanx II

Well put, Wish.

[WishMaster3K]

Re: Phalanx II

Thanks.

I really want to love Para II, I really do.. But Phalanx II seems more functional. However, I don't forsee myself taking that to level 3, so I'm probably going to go with a LvL2/LvL2/Lvl2 spread for ParaII/SlowII/PhalanxII.

But honestly, I haven't even started Group II merits. But that's a good thing, because ever since they released them, my opinions have changed every few months.

(I guess since I'm raising PLD now, I see how much it helps when your mage backs you up..)

And having Phalanx II gurantees me in the Tank PT. I refuse to be a RDM that sits out on the side afk because 50 showed up to Genbu that night.

[Callisto]

Re: Phalanx II

I still get solid use out of Para II, and it works well when I use it. Of course I don't use it in XP anymore, but most of the time I'm a puller anyways, so I'm focusing on claiming rather than debuffing. Some instances where I have used it recently it has worked well though:

Duo'd the Evsiceration WSNM with a NIN. Para II absolutely destroyed this mob, and this was when it was still only at level 1. The duration left a bit to be desired, but the proc rate was great.

Landed it on Apocalyptic Beast the last time I did Dynamis-Buburimu, right when he used Manafont. It stole several large spell casts from him, saving loads of MP for the alliance.

Used it in PvP and it proc'd as well as Ice Spikes does, let me use Shock Spikes(which also worked very well in PvP, much better than it does against mobs).

I definitely wouldn't base your group 2 merit choices off of what you use in XP party, as for MP reasons you're better served using lower tier spells on fodder mobs anyways, and if you only went for XP mobs you really wouldn't have use for any spells outside of Dia III. Getting buffer and merit points is the smallest part of a 75 RDMs adventuring, you should base your merits on what serves you best in Dynamis/Limbus/Sky/HNM/Missions, the 'real' fights.

[Raydeus]

Re: Phalanx II

Sorry Wish but you didn't get the point of my post.

[WishMaster3K]

Re: Phalanx II

/slap

So explain!

Callisto, that's a great point, but what's the landing rate on these mobs and how much skill is required? I have no end-game gear except for maybe a couple pieces hear and there from soloable and/or duoable NMs.

No Relic, No Sky, No Sea.

But you have all those toys, so tell me how your duration/landing experiences are, because at my current gear choice, meriting spells to lang on the big mobs in End-Game activities is a bit out there...

[Kirsteena]

Re: Phalanx II

And that is why merits are for your to tailor as you see fit. 5 rdm in a shell having Slow II and para II meritted fully is a total waste of effort. At most, for the big fights, you are going to have two, maybe 3 in an alliance anyway. Phalanx II is useful for tank party, and I don't blame them for asking for it. I claim squatters rights as primary rdm, with Bautier as my second!

In a way I'm glad the discussion came up. I would have considered it - AFTER I finish the whm merits (Shellra V capped, barspell etc), and the blm merits I need.

[Callisto]

Re: Phalanx II

/slap

So explain!

Callisto, that's a great point, but what's the landing rate on these mobs and how much skill is required? I have no end-game gear except for maybe a couple pieces hear and there from soloable and/or duoable NMs.

No Relic, No Sky, No Sea.

But you have all those toys, so tell me how your duration/landing experiences are, because at my current gear choice, meriting spells to lang on the big mobs in End-Game activities is a bit out there...

It depends on the fight obviously, but here's what I got:

My Enfeebling Skill with gear/merits is 317. In my debuffing set both my MND and INT are at right about 100, and I have 2 merits each in Earth/Ice/Wind Acc.

Against Promathia, I was unable to land absolutely anything outside of Slow II without Elemental Seal, except I landed Para II once and Gravity once over 6 fights. Para proc'd ok but wore off quickly. The same deal went for Apocalypse Nigh.

Aside from ones that have a specific elemental resistance against it(i.e. Genbu vs. Poison), Sky gods I can debuff in 1-2 tries. Seiryu is easy to land Para II on, and it procs pretty well, I haven't tried it since getting it up to level 2 though. I haven't done a Kirin fight in ages, so I'm not sure how easy it is for me to Grav/Silence him.

Dynamis/Limbus Trigger NMs/Floor Bosses I rarely get resisted from unless it's an ice-based mob. Para II lands in 1 try usually and gives me at least 5-7 procs before wearing.

The Apoc Beast I noted above did resist the first cast or two of Para II, but when it did stick it worked like gangbusters.

I'm fighting Proto-Omega tonight and Proto-Ultima on Sunday, I'll post how those go after I get a shot at debuffing them.