Goddamn. Level 34 and still the last person anyone wants to level with. Sorry Halistanis, Brody and Ghoughnai. No hard feelings to you. But I just can't take any more of being a mid-level shapeshifter with a crappy form. Can't rank alone, can't pk, Can't explore. Finding a group is way too frustrating. Subhero defensive shapeshifters suck. Third tier forms can't tank anything worth fighting. Only the sand lizard is good, and I had bobcat. Nobody wants to rank when the tank has to rest every two fights.

Every login goes like this:

who
tell 1. Please travel with me
reply Okay, I understand maybe next time.
tell 2. Please travel with me
reply Okay, I understand maybe next time.
...
Wait 5 minutes
Repeat

Is it the small playerbase? Was I just bad at asking people to travel? Bad luck? My imagination? Who knows, but I'd rather stab myself in the throat with a felt-tip pen than put up with any more of this garbage.

So I'm taking suggestions: My goal is to find some wands so I can play a real mage. What's a good explorer for that?

It can often be pretty hard finding a party to group with - so you often have to end up taking on sub-optimal parties and stop thinking about powerranking, and instead concentrate on getting 1 rank every couple of hours.

It's a pain in the butt, but as long as you don't lead your groupmates into death, they'll likely remember you when they get a bit stronger, and take you on if they need someone to take a blow or two.

Even after saying all that, all it takes is one lucky session where a strong ranger and warrior combo (for example) will drag you around the Battlefields and you don't even need to tank. Then you get your forms, and you make sure to pay them back by being their levelling bit*h when they need it (and you don't).

Some of the midranks of a defensive shifter are tough - but if you can make it to your third form, you've already crossed your weakest point - and are climbing towards your peak.

Yeah, it was pretty much the way you asked people. If you know you're form is pathetic, then you're going to have to make up for it in some other way. You can't just expect to piggy back on people, that makes you look like a retard. You have to bring SOMETHING productive to a group. I can't give you any ideas, because it's something you need to work on on your own.

Screw it, here's an example: A low level mage (10-20) who takes the time to collect a handful of useful offensive wands to use during combat when their mana is exhausted. That's being crafty, and using more of your potential.

All I saw from you was, "Hey! Let's group!"

Lame. People who don't even bother to introduce themselves won't even get a response from me. You don't put forth any effort in the basics, and you probably aren't worth your weight.

>Goddamn. Level 34 and still the last person anyone wants to
>level with. Sorry Halistanis, Brody and Ghoughnai. No hard
>feelings to you. But I just can't take any more of being a
>mid-level shapeshifter with a crappy form. Can't rank alone,
>can't pk, Can't explore. Finding a group is way too
>frustrating. Subhero defensive shapeshifters suck. Third tier
>forms can't tank anything worth fighting. Only the sand lizard
>is good, and I had bobcat. Nobody wants to rank when the tank
>has to rest every two fights.

Bobcat's just not that bad, especially at the level you're at. If you're that terrible of a tank, some of that is you.

>Every login goes like this:
>
>who
>tell 1. Please travel with me
>reply Okay, I understand maybe next time.
>tell 2. Please travel with me
>reply Okay, I understand maybe next time.
>...
>Wait 5 minutes
>Repeat
>
>Is it the small playerbase? Was I just bad at asking people to
>travel? Bad luck? My imagination? Who knows, but I'd rather
>stab myself in the throat with a felt-tip pen than put up with
>any more of this garbage.

RP, fight, make friends, make enemies.

Honestly, who wants to group with a random shapeshifter begging for a group? No one. It's like being in the middle of a pick-up basketball game and some guy comes up and asks if he can join your team and score some touchdowns. Just the manner of asking tells you he's going to be dead weight at best and that you don't want him on your side. Sorry if that's harsh, but I think it's also true.

>So I'm taking suggestions: My goal is to find some wands so I
>can play a real mage. What's a good explorer for that?

The best explorer to find wands is the mage you want to use those wands with.

Yep, Yep, and Yep. Exploring with the character you want to use wands with is the way to go. Heck, you might get lucky like me and stumble upon your barrier location. Or you might beg and plead with a cabal mate for some aura locations. Or you can give up on shield locations and then get the spell given to you! Seriously though, if you devote some real time and effort to finding wands (that includes asking people!) with the character you want to use wands with, you will see success.

Editted to add: This from someone who was convinced wands were some sort of conspiracy for everyone else. Not playing a mage in a long time will do that to you. Also, never take anything other than utility as a major, as the other foci lack the ability to do the thing they're *supposed* to be good at until 4th tier (3rd tier if you get really lucky).

I've actually gotten really lucky with my third major form in water.... w00t jellyfish :P

I felt luckier with otter in some sense. But having jellyfish and it's damage reduction and second attack perfected early on is sweet if you get a second attack using low dam redux major form like manta or dolphin. It heals while impaled is a nice bonus to have. It's definitely in the dam redux top four with armadillo, crocodile and walrus.

You got a shifter to 34. The hard part is over! You were what, 4?5? ranks from your major form. Should have stuck it out.

Ah well.

>Bobcat's just not that bad, especially at the level
>you're at. If you're that terrible of a tank, some of that is
>you.

Huh? A bobcat is a bobcat is a bobcat. What can change that? You gear for hp, enl stone, enl haste, bite;where;bite;where;bite;where;bite. That's shapeshifter ranking. Bobcat isn't total crap but if I want more than 150 exp per kill someone has else to tank. Where should I be? I can't tank dark guards, drow or battlefield. Azuremain is like 150 exp per. At that rank the battlefield is the basic spot for evil/neutral. Bobcat can do maybe two maybe three mobs before resting.

>RP, make friends, fight, make enemies.

>Honestly, who wants to group with a random shapeshifter
>begging for a group? No one. It's like being in the middle
>of a pick-up basketball game and some guy comes up and asks if
>he can join your team and score some touchdowns.

I was RPing. Not great maybe but I wasn't just that "gorpu?" guy. I talked to everyone I ranked with and I tried to make my tells a little interesting. I know you can kill anyone with a newbie bread but fight? As a bobcat?! You've gotta be kidding me. I'm a third-tier defensive shifter with no wands. I can't kill anyone.

>The best explorer to find wands is the mage you want to use
>those wands with.

How do you figure? What if I want to play a maran transmuter? It'll take me 10 times as long to explore with that transmuter than it will as a shifter. And you'll never make it past squire as a wandless trannie (hehe) unless you're super leet and if I was leet I'd have wands. I could explore with my "real" char if my role was "I'm a guy who gets his ass kicked a lot." But if my role is "I go out and kill evil" I'm pretty fukked if I can't ever kill anyone. By the time I find any wands I'll have spent 200 hours being taken out like garbage.

Shapeshifters are pretty strong in their own right towards the high end. You want the high end, you're going to have to be patient. Instead of trying to piggy back higher level characters, why not try finding people who are like 8 or 9 level below you, help them rank up and get more powerful, and then you've just made some good comrades, because you've taken them under your belt. Yeah, you might only get 150 per kill, but who the #### cares? Experience is experience. Don't be greedy, and want 500 or 600 per kill. Personally, it just sounds like you don't know how to play a shapeshifter, or a mage for that matter.

But if my role is "I go out and kill evil" I'm pretty fukked if I can't ever kill anyone.

That's why you don't put your successfulness into role beforehand. Just be what you are. What happens happens. A role that is dependent of you being successful PKer is a ####ty one, since it is unable to adapt.

>
>>The best explorer to find wands is the mage you want to use
>>those wands with.
>
>How do you figure? What if I want to play a maran transmuter?
>It'll take me 10 times as long to explore with that transmuter
>than it will as a shifter. And you'll never make it past
>squire as a wandless trannie (hehe) unless you're super leet
>and if I was leet I'd have wands. I could explore with my
>"real" char if my role was "I'm a guy who gets his ass kicked
>a lot." But if my role is "I go out and kill evil" I'm pretty
>fukked if I can't ever kill anyone. By the time I find any
>wands I'll have spent 200 hours being taken out like garbage.
>

The reason is, at least in part, that just because you find wands with one mage does not mean you will find them with your next mage. The only wands you need to find with any mage is your mages sleeks. And the way sleek wands work at least you need to find them with the character you are currently playing because there location, within a certain set of defined location, is random for each mage.

The reason these are the only wands you need to find with your mage is because other non-sleeks can be found with non-mages. So you can role any other explorer type and character you might be more comfortable with and find those.

But I can agree with you sometimes ranking shifters is a pain in the ass :P

>Huh? A bobcat is a bobcat is a bobcat. What can change that?
>You gear for hp, enl stone, enl haste,
>bite;where;bite;where;bite;where;bite. That's shapeshifter
>ranking. Bobcat isn't total crap but if I want more than 150
>exp per kill someone has else to tank. Where should I be? I
>can't tank dark guards, drow or battlefield. Azuremain is like
>150 exp per. At that rank the battlefield is the basic spot
>for evil/neutral. Bobcat can do maybe two maybe three mobs
>before resting.

Well, I gotta say, you were going about it all wrong.

Playing several shapeshifters in the past, I feel like I've got a bit of a right to comment here.

You want a good, consistent group of people to help rank you? Then put in the effort to get the gear to make yourself useful besides your form.

The most glaring thing that you didn't do was stock up on wands. You probably thought you could rush right to 45, get your major, and Bob's your uncle after that. Not always the case.

I'm sure you had a necromancer you could have asked, but I don't think you bothered. Necromancers in that ranking area are pretty good groupmates, especially if you're tanking. Maledict and you're good to go, especially with some of the wands that Magus was talking about. Hand them off to the necro and he's an invoker after he's done maledicting.

Two people shouldn't be overlooked, especially if you're getting xp and you're hurting for groups. A really good way (this is more for low-level, and you didn't even need to go this route even) is to stock up on items that can heal you and be in close proximity to a healer. This, you'll need to be a lot more paranoid with (especially if it's you and a couple other lowbie mages running around) but it can be done.

Good luck.

>Huh? A bobcat is a bobcat is a bobcat. What can change that?
>You gear for hp, enl stone, enl haste,
>bite;where;bite;where;bite;where;bite. That's shapeshifter
>ranking. Bobcat isn't total crap but if I want more than 150
>exp per kill someone has else to tank. Where should I be? I
>can't tank dark guards, drow or battlefield. Azuremain is like
>150 exp per. At that rank the battlefield is the basic spot
>for evil/neutral. Bobcat can do maybe two maybe three mobs
>before resting.

I would just like to note that I played Knash. A Chaotic Evil felar Offense/Offense shifter. From getting my first 3rd tier form (boar) till about getting my first 4th tier form (boo alligator) I practically ranked solo. My second 3rd tier form was wolf, which I almost never used. These are offense forms. And I solo ranked with them. Making, iirc, between 200-300 xp a mob. How? I explored some areas and found some decent razor-tooth mobs that didn't track, was reasonably close to a major city with a healer, and a rarely visited area. Sure I had to rest two or three times just to fight one mob, but hey, you take what you can get. Especially when you can't find a group.

As far as groups were concerned, I almost always got passed over because others were looking for a defense form shifter. So once they heard that I was an offense major I would often get told 'Too bad' if they were looking for a third member. Or would be left hanging for a third if I found a second person but they didn't want to tank and I sure didn't want to tank with someone I didn't know who is evil align watching my back.

Only knew aura sources and that was my extent of wand knowledge. Got shown a few locations but the wands were never there.

And if it was possible for an Offense/Offense shifter to make it to hero, a defense shifter shouldn't have it so tough. Especially when I get alligator at 42 but don't get panther till 50. Boo alligator.

The reason why they say the way to find wands as a mage is to play the mage you want to find wands with is because sleek locations are different for each mage char, iirc.

You mean football, not basketball...There is no touchdown in Basketball...But I do agree with your theory...I have mastered most of my skills & spells that doesn't require a target...Once I even mastered Word of Recall (underdark) cause I couldnt find anyone to group with for hours.

Maybe try to join a Cabal...

... and awful clueless.

At least that's how I read it.