We analyze the pros and cons of each subclass of the already-out massively multiplayer online game from Eyedentity and Shanda Games.
With the Saint Haven update out and the level cap increased to 32, gamers new to Dragon Nest may be perplexed as to which subclass they should be after hitting level 15. Here's a breakdown of all the subclasses available for the game's main four classes.
Swordmaster: One of the subclasses from the warrior's side, the swordmaster's forte is performing quick strikes onto enemies. He has a good mix of melee and ranged attacks; his crescent cleave hits enemies from a good midrange, while the frenzied charge is, well, just a glorified charging stab that knocks a group of foes into the air. We were fans of his two unique stances: the parrying stance and hacking stance.
Though the former is suitable when you're backing away from a mob while waiting for the cooldown for your other skills, the latter is good for juggling clustered enemies for a small amount of time. Basically, you stand in a sword-drawing position for a few seconds; clicking the attack button makes you do rapid slashes.
If you favor using the sword more than the other weapons while applying hit-and-run tactics and pressure on foes, the swordmaster subclass is the way to go.
Mercenary: Another subclass of the warrior, the mercenary specializes in taking hits while performing crowd-control attacks so that mobs and enemies take notice of him first. His high tolerance for damage is due to his many buffs and upgrades like iron skin (super armor buff and immune to stun), empowering howl (party gets super armor and defense bonuses), and battle howl (attack ratings and critical chances are increased).
The mercenary can dish it out without much reprisal because a majority of his melee attacks have a good chance of interrupting other enemy's attacks. Examples include the midrange bombs away that sends enemies flying, the circle swing, and the demolition fist. If surrounded and anticipating the worst, he can use the roll attack to get out of a jam while also dealing damage to whoever is foolish enough to be on his landing path. His whirlwind attack travels a good distance, but it's better as an offensive crowd control tool and should be used to press forward toward the enemy.
Pick this class if you love accepting requests for being the group's tank for both player-versus-player and player-versus-environment sessions and if you favor using hammers and axes. After all, the majority of this class's skills require the aforementioned weapons.
Paladin: Most fantasy world paladins have a mix of heavy hitting and healing; Dragon Nest's paladin takes one for the team, thanks to its assortment of spells. A subclass of the cleric class, the paladin allows you to buff up your party with conviction aura and elemental aura, as well as strengthen itself with the counterattack stance called stance of faith and the damage-reducing iron will.
Even so, the paladin can still dish it out, though not as effectively as the other classes. Lightning spells like smite zap make the paladin leap up and strike down anyone within his path, while sacred hammering charges up your flail and makes two hammers come out during your normal attacks. The latter skill was good at raking up the combos for a better dungeon completion grade during PVE when complemented with the paladin's lightning spells.
While the developers officially state that the paladin's mana pool is limited, we didn't find it much of a detriment as long as the right buffs were applied and you left the main attacks to the heavy hitters of the four-person party. You may find the mana pool a problem if you're going solo; our choice of tactic was to go offensive with the lightning and attack spells on the regular mobs while saving up the buffs against the dungeon bosses.
Priest: While the paladin has buffs, the priest can summon giant cross things called relics onto the battlefield that can both help the party and hinder opponents nearby. Bind relic put nearby mobs at a standstill and makes them ripe for a party beatdown, while lightning relic seems self-explanatory (relic comes down, shoots out bolts that fry enemies). Do keep in mind that when any sort of relic pops down, it produces its own agro and will make enemies cluster to it.
The priest seems more effective at healing because the healing relic and cure relic can help turn the tide of battle in both PVE and PVP scenarios. For that bit of offensive touch in case your priest is cornered, the area-of-effect holy burst can get you out of a crowd while chain lightning is a great surprise attack for approaching enemies in a small group.
We don't recommend putting your skill points on grand cross; the attack comes out slowly and ineffectively when compared to the rest of his arsenal and relic attacks. Much like some spellcasters in the game, the priest is a good choice if you play well with others and don't mind staying at the sidelines to keep your party members in tip-top shape.
Acrobat: Among the two subclasses in the archer class, the acrobat seems well suited for one-on-one PVP scenarios, thanks to her powerful close-ranged skills. While obviously not on par with the warrior's subclasses, the acrobat can hold her own with the crowd-controlling furious winds and the multi-hitting straight-attack cyclone kick that also doubles as an escape tool.
Speaking of which, she can do an additional dodge with the chain tumble skill while also pulling off a somersault kick in the middle of an attack that doubles as another escape tool. Furthermore, her speed can be increased with the spirit boost and spiritual focus buffs, with the former affecting surrounding party members.
All in all, the majority of the acrobat's attacks are tailored toward players who love to initiate hit-and-run attacks, be it by themselves or in a party.
Bow Master: If you don't want to get your hands dirty up close like the warriors and his subclasses, the bow master is your go-to woman. One of our favorite moves among her long-ranged repertoire was the siege stance; once activated, the bow master stood her ground in a dominating position and launched superpowered arrows that knocked down and dealt critical hits onto enemies for a good 13 seconds.
Rain of Arrows was also our most used skill; we had to gauge our distance before launching the multi-hitting move so that the arrows hit their designated targets. We usually pulled off the move at the start before capping it off with the aforementioned siege stance for the finishing touch. While you're waiting for the cooldown periods of those moves, her other skills like rapid shot, stunning shot, and the semi crowd-control swift shot can dish out the hurt. The latter isn't effective if you are surrounded by a huge mob though, so always keep your distance.
The bow master can also increase her range using the sylph's aid buff; we stress that you use this every single time before battle. Like we said before, only go for this subclass if you're keen on being the sniper of the party because she's a sitting duck when surrounded by tanks and melee combatants.
Elemental Lord: This subclass for the sorceress loves playing with fire, as well as ice. As such, she's a really good midrange damage dealer with great crowd-control spells. Fire wall, inferno, and frozen spikes are good up-close spells, while the long-ranged phoenix strike launches three phoenix-shaped projectiles that explode upon impact. When surrounded, her hot rod skill not only gets her out but also leaves a trail of fire in her wake.
Furthermore, she can use ignite or shatter to damage and slow down enemies with the burn and frozen status, respectively. As such, use both these skills after casting the appropriate elemental spells.
When you want nothing but fire and ice damage with the ability to hinder foes with status effects from those affinities, you will want to use this subclass if you're going the sorceress path. She also has buffs against fire and ice if a mirror match scenario presents itself in a PVP session.
Force User: Being a force user subclass requires you to play well with your group. She isn't really effective on her own because her spells do average damage compared to the elementalists. However, the debuffs from all of her skills are a godsend against mobs and PVE situations. Time stop is an area-of-effect move that stops enemies dead in their tracks, making them prone to your party's abuse. Gravity trap is also a great area-of-effect debuff that decreases enemy movement and speed.
Nonetheless, her offensive attacks warrant mentioning. Triple orb summons three black hole-ish spheres consecutively and damages anything within its area, while spectrum dishes a good amount of damage to surrounding enemies. Her nine tails laser is good against enemies from afar, while her linear ray is a good midrange attack where she shoots out a quick laser beam. Our favorite tactic was using black hole to bring a cluster of enemies onto one spot, followed up with a summon comet spell to bring down a hard-hitting meteorite onto their noggins.
The force user may not be upfront with DPS skills, but she can hinder a PVP group if her time-warping spells are cast at the right time. We recommend that future force users work together with archers and sharpshooters. Cast time stop and gravity trap within an area while the long-ranged warriors bring in the hurt from a distance.
As if those subclasses weren't enough, each of these subclasses has its own upgrades (a subclass within a subclass, mind you) that will cater to a user's play style of that particular subclass. For instance, a priest user can either choose the inquisitor subclass or the saint subclass; the former will have his lightning spells powered up with better combo-enabling properties while the latter will have better upgrades for his relic powers.
Of course, this feature will only be available in the game's next big update, which will be out for the public next year.
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