The Little Mountain vs The Big Mountain

Concluding Information on increasing AC for my Monk

To follow up with my attempts to improve the AC of my Earth Stance light Monk, Lynncletica, without gimping her, I have news.

With an Icy Raiment outfit, some Armored +6 Bracers, a Radiant Ring, Combat Expertise and an Epic Ring of the Buccaneer (tier 2), Lynncletica sits, with no buffs, at 56.

Add ship buffs, and she sustains herself at 60 for an hour. (That’s in Earth Stance IV. If I move to Ocean Stance, that’s about 65.)

A +3 Barkskin potion (which stacks with the +3 Natural Armor in Earth Stance IV) brings it to 63 in Earth Stance.

The Lasting potions from the DDO Store add +2 to DEX and WIS, rising her to 65 in Earth Stance for 10 minutes.

Kick in the Shield clicky for 1 minute of buff and Lynncletica’s maximum self-buffing goes to 69.

I sacrificed only 20 HP and 2 STR, and added Weapon Finesse to make Lynn’s strikes more consistent. I can’t wait to take Lynncletica into the Shroud or Devil Battlefield again soon.

How To Busy Yourself When Everyone else is in Smuggler’s Rest

So, trying to escape the frenzy of Crystal Cove for an evening, I decided to revisit an old friend, back when he was, um, less dead. That “friend” is Sor’jek Incanni, the boss of the level 10 raid, “Tempest’s Spine.” I didn’t want to intrude on him by crashing his lair with a large party, so I pondered a solo visit on Normal.

Tempest’s Spine was my very first raid long ago, guided very well by a character leader I think was named “Mofus.” It’s still a personal favorite that I guide with fellow guildies from time to time. This time, I wanted to put the (capped) Lynn through some paces and see if soloing this one was possible, technically. Answer: It is, with a little preparation and a lot of patience.

The two challenges for a soloing melee fighter entering Tempest’s Spine are that (1) no hirelings are allowed and (2) you must be able to activate a INT 18 rune. Lynncletica self-heals quite well, so heals aren’t an issue. After a first abortive run, I realized that one of the enemy mages had destroyed my House Phlarian buffs, so I couldn’t manage the INT rune. A return to the city for a junk Clever +6 helm fixed that for a second attempt.

It’s funny what can scare the bejeezus out of you at level 10 that you can manage as easily as Neo plowing through several Agents in the Matrix. Fire and Ice? Just kite one to the other and pummel them. Rust monsters? Bring ’em. Iron Golems? Meh. A marut? Void Strike IV removed him from existence after three blows. Beholders? Stunned and slain.

On the end fight, I had my doubts. I have never been a great puzzle solver, but this one wasn’t as nasty. The challenge was to solve the puzzle while keeping Sor’jek busy and not attempting to fling me off the mountaintop. I considered my run a success even if I didn’t beat the Big Guy; I saw it as an exercise in fun in just getting to the summit, as well as noting alternate routes and places were people get lost in a raid party for later runs.

So I summoned up a Xoriat plaything for Sor’jek to play with as I worked out the puzzle and added the runes. That worked, although I used one too many summons, leaving me all alone once the puzzle was down. It took very little time to whittle the giant to less than 50% health…

…And then, despite my back to the wall as I fought, Sor’jek regained his weather control and flung me into space. And I mean, REALLY into space. I hadn’t turned off my Slow Fall and still had on my Cannith Boots of Propulsion–a rookie mistake for many that get to the summit.

I was still very airborne, traveling at Mach 0.2 over the land after 30 seconds before I recalled, still unable to see much of the ground. The area round the summit is FREAKING HUGE. Next to, perhaps, the Vale of Twilight, that has got to be the largest wilderness/raid area in the game.

Next time, Sor’jek. Next time. Maybe I’ll bring a very big Onyx Panther to chew on you while I get matters completed. 🙂