So I was wondering, what would be a good race/class for cutting one's teeth in the PK world. I know each class is unique and has a different perspective on fighting, but I'm looking for something not too complicated, not super defensive (I can learn how to be a tank without much problem, I'm sure), and not boring. I was thinking perhaps a human sword spec warrior, maybe hand to hand as a second spec, but I would love to hear other people's thoughts.

My suggestion is that a certain hero shifter says 'Enough!' and starts to PK those who always came to PK him in the Inn. Gear up for hp and rock the Villagers. Seriously, you have good forms for PK, so why not learn how to PK with a shifter while you have one? Your forms have some offensive capability too and are well suited for PK.

That would be a little twist to your current characters storyline. You have some enemies. Don't throw away a possibility to learn to PK with your current character. After all, you might never get the same combo again and it is well-suited for PK. It is not against the law for a Herald to have a set of balls when it's necessary.

Tips for your shifter PK:

-Have an alias for revert;c word for quick escape.
-Remember that maledicts make a lag to your shift and revert.
-Know that maledicts will hurt your ability to fight(such as reducing your ability to dodge and hit them).
-Don't go to the massive giant to fight the villagers.
-Know your forms and when to use what form.
-If you have mage foes, know that their melee output isn't very terrifying and that they find dispel magic rather disquieting.

You could add something like 'Teach Trurkrag a lesson.' to your list of things to do. Granted, the guy knows his stuff and is fairly dangerous, but maybe you could learn from fighting him and possibly even defeat him. It will not matter if you suck, in CF we have a saying: 'Die and learn.', but you should also try to survive when you think that you are going to die. And when you die, think why? Survival is easier in Hero range, so you could get the 'soft start' to PK you were asking for. Personally, I started to learn PK with a hero utility shifter.

As for learning tactical dimension, every class is different and you'll need to learn them by playing them all or learning from your opponents. You already have one combo. Try learning it's PK abilities and the basic PK stuff first(such as things like when to flee, when to fight, how to fight etc.).

Yeah, I've learned a lot about fighting with this character, and much as I'd love to do what you've said, it just isn't in his role right now. He has a whole lot of things to worry about, and currently, those Lions are the last thing on his mind, what with most of them being banned from the Inn, these days.

The things that usually seem to cripple people aren't selected during character generation. My most general advice:

1) Pick a character and stick with it until CON death. I can't emphasize this enough. The classes play very differently from one another, and you'll confuse yourself immensely by hopping from one to another.

2) Read 'help tips'. It's roughly 400 years old, but the principles still apply.

3) Use at least a basic client. Just being able to alias commands will speed things up immensely, and there are a wide range of free clients out there.

4) Log as much as is feasible. With most computers, you can safely log your entire session without worrying about disk space. After playing, maybe set aside 5-10 minutes to look over the key moments, both when things went well and when they didn't. If you died, figure out why. Don't accept "That guy is just better." or "I was ganged." Accept things like "I need to check 'where' more often." or "Oh. My character can cast Detect Invis but I let it lapse there."
or "After I got disarmed, I didn't have a backup weapon to wield."

5) Ask questions, either IC or here. Keep in mind that some people will be jerks, or don't know what the heck they're talking about. But you'll generally get more good advice than bad, and you'll eventually figure out how to filter it a little for yourself.

6) Don't overestimate equipment. Learn how to get decent equipment. Assume that any fancy item that you stumble onto is a very temporary bonus until you learn to replace it.

Once you've done the above, you'll probably know enough about the game to see which type of character appeals to you. Weigh this heavily-- if you're having fun with a particular character, the defeats won't bug you so much.

If you aren't sure what class to play, early on, I'd recommend a class with a good concealment ability and no empowerment requirements-- thief, assassin, ranger. You'll want to learn to keep yourself alive first, and kill the other guy second. (Anti-paladins can also look good here, with the concealment ability replaced by the easy but risky escape of Teleport.) If you're an experienced roleplayer, shaman, druid, and paladin might make this list also.

From there, try some attacks when the situation would call for it. If you only fight when the other guy attacks you, you'll frequently be at the disadvantage-- they probably wouldn't attack if they didn't at least think they had a good chance to win. If things don't go well, there's no shame in running, concealing, teleporting or whatever and trying again another time. And sometimes, just bringing the pressure to them will cause them to screw up.

Finally, accept that you're probably going to be getting your ass kicked for the immediate future, regardless of the size of your brain. Some CF players have been here over a decade, and the game is deep and broad enough that you won't be able to be even average in a week or a month. You will, however, keep getting better, since the game is much more about skill/knowledge than luck.

valguarnera@carrionfields.com

I have only this to add. If you are trying to learn to pk these two things are IMHO the most important.

1) Make a regear list:

Write it down. Keep it next to you. After you die (and you will die) go to your corpse, then begin regearing immediately. Replace missing pieces as quickly as possible.

2) Try to PK.

You aren't going for 100-0 you're looking for high pkill count. That means taking risks, which will help you learn what is especially dangerous for your character vs what you can get away with. Plus, you've got that handy regear list, so when you die, no big, just start with the regearing. Consider any gear upgrades completely transient and unimportant. Your regear list is your gear. If you get better gear and start playing more conservatively, you aren't learning to pk anymore, you are learning only to survive, which is worlds apart.


Valg's advice is dead-on, but if you make (and use) a regear list and actively go out and really try to rack up kills (even if you fail miserably) then by the time you con-die you will have gained immeasurable insight.

Good advice, thank you, and as you've said, yes, I've learned how to survive. One other question, though, what classes should I avoid at first? I don't mean because of empowerment issues. I'm fairly confident in my roleplaying abilities. I would think classes like necromancers or invokers would probably not be the best to start out on, but then, I don't really know. Are there classes or races I should avoid until I have a bit more experience? Thanks again.

I would suggest looking for a class/race combo that does not look to be to complicated. Some class/race combos just have more easily usable tactics that would probably be easier to get the hang of at first. Other then that play something with some defined enemies, this will make it easier to find pk oppurtuinites (If you play a neutral neurtal sphere peace herald it might be hard to justify fighting alot :P ).

All classes are different though so learning to pk with a fire giant sword spec is not the same as learning to do it with a elf invoker. That said I would avoid mage classes at first and focus on more melee oriented classes, warriors, assassins, and rangers.

If I was forced to recomment something I would take a giant warrior sword spec or a svi warrior axe spec as they have some pretty easy tactics you should be able to figured out.

>what classes should I avoid at first? I don't mean because of
>empowerment issues. I'm fairly confident in my roleplaying
>abilities. I would think classes like necromancers or invokers
>would probably not be the best to start out on, but then, I don't
>really know. Are there classes or races I should avoid until
>I have a bit more experience? Thanks again.

I agree about empowerment. Some people are really into emotes, esays and all that jazz, but if you can write a role and stick to it especially when doing so puts you at a game-play disadvantage then you shouldn't shy away from empowerment characters. That said, empowerment is much more of a chore with some imms than with others. That's partly schedule related, but some are also more selective about who they empower, tattoo, etc.

If you plan on heroing then I would advise against any class with the "zap" skill unless you feel like testing your hand at the wand system. Note that I'm not saying you should categorically avoid these classes, but be aware that if you choose one, figuring out wands is something you're going to want to spend some time on.

If you play a combo that doesn't get detect invis, then you'll want to spend some time figuring out where to buy/bater side-effect-less detects, which means you'll also want to know how to generate gold (or find items to barter).

What Valg said about stealth classes is good advice, since it puts you in a better situation to fight on your own terms. On the flip side, stealth classes are not without their achilles heels, which you'll quickly discover if you choose to play one. Assassin or ranger would be a good choice, or maybe a thug thief. If you play the thief, you might consider trying to find some useful scrolls. There are a few that can greatly enhance a thief's deathfulness.

Paladin is another option. Especially if you feel like your role-play is up to snuff. With paladins, bear in mind that much of their strength comes from virtues, which are given out largely based on role-play. Playing a shield paladin won't teach you a ton about tactics, since their PK options are somewhat limited, but it would at least provide the opportunity for you to get accustomed to being in fights without spamming commands, learning when to flee, etc. Also they're pretty handy for exploring and ranking, and have identify so you can figure out what new gear does.

Otherwise good advice.

Huh. Was that removed from the class sometime in the last year or so? I could swear I used to identify stuff. Maybe I just got lore high enough to be useful and forgot about it.

>1) Make a regear list:
>
>Write it down. Keep it next to you. After you die (and you
>will die) go to your corpse, then begin regearing immediately.
> Replace missing pieces as quickly as possible.

I'll agree with this and tack on as an addition/tangent that your ghost period is a valuable resource and should be treated as such. Often it's a chance to get at gear or resources that you can't realistically get while unghosted (or at least, without help you might not have, etc.) Example: Maybe your mid-40s warrior can realistically go request Vampire Slayer as a ghost but can't really get in to get it and suck up that vulnerable period without 1-2 allies that you don't have handy.

This is both completely true and also a way to look at death as not being a pure loss.

All that being said, you should still plan on being minimally functional as ghost ends. Getting that one piece of top-end gear isn't worth it if you end up starving in the dark with it, and picking up some better gear isn't worth it if you have to face a PK you can't win without gold to heal or a potion to get your ass out of there.

Request for someone to put this thread on sticky.
That is really good PK advice.