Warfare and ?

[mainer]

Played TQ years ago from a box set cd and thought I'd give the anniversary edition that I got on sale a try. I forgot how much fun it was, TQ really holds up well after almost 10 years.

Anyway, my first mastery is Warefare and I'm almost level 8 (still in Sparta) so I will need to choose a 2nd, and I'm looking for suggestions. Years ago I believe I took Warfare & Defense, but I was thinking about something with a bit more ranged damage & mob damage, it's really easy to get surrounded by mobs.

I was leaning towards cold damage (can't remember the Mastery name), something to freeze enemies or slow them down.

So far I've got 10 pts in Warefare, giving me access to 2nd teir skills. I've only invested points into the 1st level main attack skill.

Is it better to dual weild, or use 1 handed & shield? So far I'm using the shield, as I can find some that add resistances & stat buffs.

It seems like health regen is huge for a melee character. I've found a helmet, greaves, & sheild that all add to the regen so my health regenerates @ about 18%. Some fights I regenerate as fast as I take damage. Not as effective in close combat boss fights, that Centaur almost killed me.

I've only invested in Str & Dex so far, and I really don't want to have to also increase Int as it spreads me too thin.

[MedeaFleecestealer]

Then Storm isn't the way to go since that's need int to be effective. You could go Dream for the Trance of Convalesence which will help with health/energy and you have Distortion Wave and also Distort Reality if you get surrounded.

[spaceman]

I'm playing a Thane (Warfare and Storm). It's fun, but definitely not a 'no kill' character. What I've done is compensate for the lack of Int and Mana by mostly adding passives from the Storm tree, as well as a few stuns so I can stun the monsters before running up and hacking them to death. I think there are builds that are much safer (defensively speaking) to play, but I'm having a lot of fun so far.

[MedeaFleecestealer]

Oh, it can be fun alright, but often you have to choose whether to go mostly physical or elemental with it. Irma2 made builds for both.

Physical
http://www.titancalc.com/TitanCalc.asp?mastery=Thane&master1=8&master2=3&sa=21&m1=32-0-1-6-1-1-8-0-12-0-0-8-6-12-0-0-1-1-0-8-0-0-0&m2=32-6-1-8-6-8-6-0-6-0-10-8-6-6-0-6-1-0-6-6-6-0-0-0

Elemental
http://www.titancalc.com/TitanCalc.asp?mastery=Thane&master1=8&master2=3&sa=21&m1=32-0-10-6-0-8-8-0-12-0-0-0-6-12-0-0-1-1-0-8-0-0-0-0&m2=32-6-1-1-6-8-6-1-6-0-10-1-6-6-0-6-1-0-6-6-6-0-0-0

You can find all of his build guides here

https://titanquestfans.net/index.php?topic=679.0

[Gummiel]

Warfare can go with just about anything really.
As for dualwield vs shield unless you are taking defence as 2nd mastery (which you said you wont) dualwield is the way to get the most out of warfare

[shane]

Warfare and defense is very common/popular. Both good masteries.

Dual wield is good if you're looking to see how high you can push your DPS, but if you're worried about being too squishy, shield will provide the extra defense. Your damage should still be fine.

Any class is technically feasible, but hybrid spellcaster/warfare is likely to be more challenging as an early character.

If you're looking for range on warfare, I really like staff champion. The wolves serve as your distraction between you and the enemy, and you can toss in briar ward if you feel the need for another layer if protection, not to mention the massive pools of health and ease of healing. Doesn't really mix with a str/dex start, though the melee version would.

HP regen is really overpowered for about the first act and the ideal route to go at first, but it tapers off eventually.

[redgreen999]

Dream is good for controlling mobs. 1 point in distort reality and maxed the synergy of temporal rift = over 6 seconds of petrify. Great panic button. Its an area spell with decent coverage that you don't need to aim. Dream also has distortion wave which will slow over 50% once maxed. That spell you need to aim. Temporal rift is better and you don't need both. Electrical burn does not stack, the game uses the highest amount. Trance of Wrath is goo to lower resists.

Dream will work with anything and helps slow and weaken mobs, ready for hacking. If building for melee, you don't get max damage out of the electical burn spells but you still get the slow/petrify bonuses. It works will as a mage if you go that route and pump int instead of str.

[mainer]

Thanks everyone for the suggestions. I'm currently level 10, and still haven't chosen, but will need to because I'm about to face the cyclops outside of Magera (Polymorphus?).

I've actually pulled out the old game manuals from the boxed CDs of my original games, TQ & Imortal Throne expansion. Hunting looks good because of the bow skills and there are many times I find that a ranged attack is critical. Earth, Storm, Nature, Spirit, & Dream all have ranged skills, but I'm leery of crippling my character because of low Int, as I normally buff up Str & Dex @ level up.

[shane]

You could run warfare alone through all of normal and beyond if you really wanted to, though it would likely mean slow and perhaps difficult progress.

I find the cyclops easier than the centaur boss that you already beat. Not sure how much a second mastery would help against him unless you've got a bunch of spare skill points, though all of those do have useful skills at the first or second tier. Between weapon training and onslaught, I would think you have pretty decent DPS now.

You probably don't need much int unless you want to be a caster or rune.

You could equip a bow in your swap slot without worrying about your second mastery if you only want to use it for occasional use but fight melee most of the time. I like hunting. Not sure I'd try it with warfare, but if you do, you'd need to choose between bow and marksmanship or melee and onslaught/possibly dual wield. Or you could use either (mostly) with throwing weapons, which splits the distance.

I like ranged for the survivability. I have a harder time with that in melee, constantly chugging potions. One good exception I found to that is spirit with life leech/damage conversion to health, and you also get a liche to help back you up in that case.

[redgreen999]

My melee build improved about 80% as soon as I found an esence (for a weapon) that had a bonus of 50% slow attack for 3 seconds. Actually It was an embodiment I used at about level 32. Later I realized I could have done that sooner with an essence I had on another build. That bonus is more common on embodiments in epic though.

Oddly enough, I have used nothing but green weapons with essence/embodiments added and they have performed better than any epic drops I found. Not sure it that was the case when you played the original game. I never played until the updated version of the game. Even now I have had a couple legendary axes fall but I still have a green sword that is better, because of the 50% slow on it.

Melee is so equip dependant regardless of 2nd mastery. I am playing a Dream/Spirit (not sure what that class is called - never have looked, lol) Sort of a hybrid because it currently has about 435 str and 300 int. I totally play it melee though. Using temporal rift to petrify for 4.3 seconds and then hit everything so they are slow when they start to move. I believe I posted that it would do 6 seconds of petrify but i remembered wrong, or was looking at stats from the original game instead of the updated one.

My toon is now level 52 and doing alright about 2/3rds into act 3 epic. Hasn't died yet. Close several times when I was entrapped. (no gear for that yet :P) But I have decent gear from other level 40 toons that have farmed 'Valley of Kings'

Totally off topic now.... The tigermen just at the end of the 'great wall' area tend to drop some of the best green swords in normal anyway. stuff with 30+ attack speed, elemental damage straight and % etc. Sometimes they have 6 bonus traits. Had a sword there that took me to about level 42.

When picking a 2nd mastery don't forget about the bonus attributes it gives. Dream is a tweener in that it does add str when you put points into the mastery levels. Some masteries don't.