Post by Deleted on Oct 27, 2016 10:44:17 GMT
Just noticed that there has been a moderate influx of players entering Hell for the first time this week. The area can be a bit overwhelming if you approach it the wrong way, so I figured I'd share some very broad advice to help people make the most of their runs and hopefully have a good time!
LEARN ABOUT ENDGAME PLAY
First, read Laser's General Advice for Level 55+ Areas. It is short and to the point, and every single player should read it thoroughly before entering the endgame areas.
If you're a caster, be sure to also read Raj's Guide to Spell Resistance.
If you're a melee, be sure to also read Raj's Guide to Crafting Weapons.
LEARN THE BASICS OF HELL AND ITS LAYERS
Bookmark the Hells Wiki and have a read of it. It is a great source of general information, and has links to specific pages for each layer as well as a Mord/Breach Guide and a Bestiary (list of all the mobs). There is a *lot* of content here, so don't feel the need to memorise all of it immediately; the important point is to simply know that its there if you ever need to look something up.
For a newbie, I would recommend just having a skim over the general Hells page and then when you are about to do a run, have a proper read of that run's layer page. That way, you'll know what to expect and understand your role, but you will be able to minimise information overload.
It's not essential straight away, but consider installing a Logger such as Higher Ground Extender. It's very handy for displaying death timers and healer notifications, as well as helping to learn mob stats (eg: what elements are most effective). You can safely ignore the Kills/Damage sections, which are mostly there to feed egos - note that getting the highest numbers doesn't necessarily mean you're doing the best.
LEARN HOW TO PLAY YOUR CHARACTER
Have a look at the Builds section of the forum, because build pages often have some extra information/tips about how to play your character. I am in the process of writing Newbie builds in the Open Subrace forum which contain general Hell advice, but many existing posts already have useful content (which I will try to provide links for in my own posts). Some *basic* starting points for the more complicated classes (and by no means a complete list):
Sorcerer/Arcane: Bane
Bard: Wiki (Play Guide)
Cleric: Newbie Cleric
Druid: Newbie Druid
Shifter: Drunken Guide to Shifting
ASK QUESTIONS
I know there can be a tendency to worry about being "that annoying guy who's always asking questions", but I (and most veterans in general) am always happy to help people who are genuinely trying to learn. This doesn't necessarily mean that you should ask any and every thing that comes into your head, because if you completed the above steps you should already know the basics. If you ask something as vague as "what do I do on this run? lolzzz", you aren't going to get a helpful answer. On the other hand, "what spell kills an Osyluth?" is highly specific and *will* get you a straight answer.
FOCUS ON ONE ENDGAME CHARACTER FIRST
The most controversial point here. You need to have some decent gear to enjoy Hell, and for a newbie without a stash of BURs it's extremely difficult to gear multiple toons at once. Consider the following example:
End results after a few weeks of playing:
*Player A has a fully-equipped Druid with a decent number of Paragon levels. They are competent with the Druid role and are easily able to start their own Shallow Hell runs and carry them to victory, or supplement a solid party to go to Deep Hell.
*Player B has three meh-equipped toons with minimal Paragon levels. They are mediocre with all three of them and practically have to leech tags from other solid parties because they are relatively low-impact on all their toons.
LEARN ABOUT ENDGAME PLAY
First, read Laser's General Advice for Level 55+ Areas. It is short and to the point, and every single player should read it thoroughly before entering the endgame areas.
If you're a caster, be sure to also read Raj's Guide to Spell Resistance.
If you're a melee, be sure to also read Raj's Guide to Crafting Weapons.
LEARN THE BASICS OF HELL AND ITS LAYERS
Bookmark the Hells Wiki and have a read of it. It is a great source of general information, and has links to specific pages for each layer as well as a Mord/Breach Guide and a Bestiary (list of all the mobs). There is a *lot* of content here, so don't feel the need to memorise all of it immediately; the important point is to simply know that its there if you ever need to look something up.
For a newbie, I would recommend just having a skim over the general Hells page and then when you are about to do a run, have a proper read of that run's layer page. That way, you'll know what to expect and understand your role, but you will be able to minimise information overload.
It's not essential straight away, but consider installing a Logger such as Higher Ground Extender. It's very handy for displaying death timers and healer notifications, as well as helping to learn mob stats (eg: what elements are most effective). You can safely ignore the Kills/Damage sections, which are mostly there to feed egos - note that getting the highest numbers doesn't necessarily mean you're doing the best.
LEARN HOW TO PLAY YOUR CHARACTER
Have a look at the Builds section of the forum, because build pages often have some extra information/tips about how to play your character. I am in the process of writing Newbie builds in the Open Subrace forum which contain general Hell advice, but many existing posts already have useful content (which I will try to provide links for in my own posts). Some *basic* starting points for the more complicated classes (and by no means a complete list):
Sorcerer/Arcane: Bane
Bard: Wiki (Play Guide)
Cleric: Newbie Cleric
Druid: Newbie Druid
Shifter: Drunken Guide to Shifting
ASK QUESTIONS
I know there can be a tendency to worry about being "that annoying guy who's always asking questions", but I (and most veterans in general) am always happy to help people who are genuinely trying to learn. This doesn't necessarily mean that you should ask any and every thing that comes into your head, because if you completed the above steps you should already know the basics. If you ask something as vague as "what do I do on this run? lolzzz", you aren't going to get a helpful answer. On the other hand, "what spell kills an Osyluth?" is highly specific and *will* get you a straight answer.
FOCUS ON ONE ENDGAME CHARACTER FIRST
The most controversial point here. You need to have some decent gear to enjoy Hell, and for a newbie without a stash of BURs it's extremely difficult to gear multiple toons at once. Consider the following example:
*Players A and B have three ~Level 55-60 toons each; Druid, Cleric and Sorcerer.
*Player A decides to focus on Druid, Player B decides to alternate between them and try to learn them all at once.
*After a bunch of Shallow Hell runs, they have each acquired a couple of decent pieces; Tia Druid Staff, Tia Sorcerer Belt, Tia Cleric Boots, upped Fist Wrap and a Pendant of the Seer.
-> Player A trades the Sorcerer Belt for a Druid Belt, the Cleric Boots for Druid Boots, and the Fist Wrap for a Wrap of Raphael.
-> Player B gives the Druid Staff to the Druid, the Sorcerer Belt/Wrap to the Sorcerer, and the Cleric Boots and Pendant of the Seer to the Cleric.
*Player A decides to focus on Druid, Player B decides to alternate between them and try to learn them all at once.
*After a bunch of Shallow Hell runs, they have each acquired a couple of decent pieces; Tia Druid Staff, Tia Sorcerer Belt, Tia Cleric Boots, upped Fist Wrap and a Pendant of the Seer.
-> Player A trades the Sorcerer Belt for a Druid Belt, the Cleric Boots for Druid Boots, and the Fist Wrap for a Wrap of Raphael.
-> Player B gives the Druid Staff to the Druid, the Sorcerer Belt/Wrap to the Sorcerer, and the Cleric Boots and Pendant of the Seer to the Cleric.
*Player A has a fully-equipped Druid with a decent number of Paragon levels. They are competent with the Druid role and are easily able to start their own Shallow Hell runs and carry them to victory, or supplement a solid party to go to Deep Hell.
*Player B has three meh-equipped toons with minimal Paragon levels. They are mediocre with all three of them and practically have to leech tags from other solid parties because they are relatively low-impact on all their toons.