I’ve never been content with any of the guides or
explanations for puppetry that are currently available. Simply put, they
regurgitate information that is readily available on the wiki that does not
help in practical matters. Puppeteers need to know how to actually fight,
defend themselves, and handle a variety of situations. Practice helps but there
are core concepts that you need to understand.
One of the most difficult aspects of the puppeteer is that
you need to have high spatial awareness to fight effectively. Puppeteer skills
gain range incrementally as they rank up, so your exact ranges will change as
you progress as a puppeteer. You have three primary ranges to keep track of: A
circular radius around your player, a circular radius around your puppet, and a
straight line from your puppet. Your puppet’s abilities rely on these radii in order to effectively fight.
The best advice that you will ever receive: get either rank
1 Pierrot or rank 1 Colossus right away. This will provide the largest overall
bonus to your damage and make you the most effective at combat. After that
focus on getting Control Marionette to rank 5 so that you have all of your
puppetry skills unlocked. Act 7 and Act 6 are arguably the two best offensive
skills to raise first but no one is going to yell at you for training skills
that are more useful to your immediate situation.
Puppeteers benefit from both Dexterity and Strength as both
add +1 max damage for every 3.5 Str or Dex and +1 min damage for every 5 Str or
Dex. Your puppets receive 70% of your Damage, Critical Rate, and Balance so
your Strength and Dexterity benefit your puppets as well.
Two excellent life skills to train on the side are Refining
and Mining. They coincide well, don’t require too much work or AP, and add a
fair bit of dexterity and strength. Combined these two skills cost 141 AP. Two excellent combat skills to train on the
side are Smash and Windmill. For Humans and Giants these two skills cost 360 AP, for Elves 315 AP. As a puppeteer you will be supporting your puppet
physically often and even fighting without your puppet at times, so it’s
imperative to have some ability to fight. Ideally you want to have all Melee
skills so work towards that goal when you have the AP to.
Puppets struggle when dealing with ranged foes. Their range
and speed just cannot compete with an archer or a mage that has a chance to
charge up their magic. These foes are going to get free hits on your puppet.
Rather than take this quietly use your Puppet’s Snare and Wire Pull to punish
these foes.
Wire Pull and Puppet’s Snare are simple enough that they do
not need a long explanation. Wire Pull takes a moment to take effect and then
drags the enemy to you while dealing a lot of damage. This puts the enemy into
your puppet’s range. If an enemy moves out of range, the skill will go off but
do nothing. Puppet’s Snare activates immediately, does damage over time, hurts
your opponent, and has a long stun. Puppet’s Snare is great for leaving an
opponent open for attacks from allies. Puppet’s Snare also blocks explosions
from suicide bombing enemies like Sulfur Spiders and Lost Sahagin! Both skills
interrupt and break through all other skills. Some enemies, such as Golems and
Goblin Bandits, are immune to Puppet’s Snare. There is no comprehensive list
for immune monsters.
Act 1: Inciting Incident
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Can stop Smash
-
Is blocked by Defense and Counterattack
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Utilizes the radius around the player
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Hits 1 target
-
Stuns enemies
Act 1 teleports the puppet immediately to anywhere that its
target is as long as they are in range. If an enemy reaches your puppet before
your attack is launched, it can still attack your puppet. To use Act 1
properly, position your puppet behind you. This is an excellent defensive skill
when fighting 1v1 and can even be used to handle multi-aggro.
( Picture Example )
Works great after a Basic Attack or Act 2. At lower ranks
its stun time is inefficient at holding an enemy off, so utilize Puppet Snare
or Windmill to protect your puppet and yourself.
Act 2: Threshold Cutter
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Breaks Defense
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Attacks 3 times
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Utilizes the radius around the puppet
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Hits 1 target
Act 2 is essentially the puppeteer’s smash. It’s slower than
a player’s smash so it is only useful for 1v1 combat. If a target is hit into
deadly, they will be knocked out of your attack but you will continue the
animation. Should this happen, immediately unsummon your puppet to prevent
damage. Act 2 is very useful for holding an enemy or boss in place.
Best used as a First Attack or if the enemy is using
Defense. At lower ranks it may just be better to Smash the enemy yourself.
Act 4: Rising Action
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Can stop Smash
-
Breaks Defense and Counterattack
-
Utilizes the radius around the player
-
Hits multiple targets
Act 4 is like Act 1 but with a longer cooldown time and no
stun time. Act 4 tends to knock enemies back really far and will hit any
enemies that are close to the player. The catch is that Act 4 has a smaller
radius than Act 1, which is a big deal. At lower ranks, Act 1 is far superior
to Act 4 at blocking enemies. Act 4 excels most when enemies are grouped
together. Just like Act 1, if an enemy reaches your puppet before your skill
goes off, the enemy will successfully attack you so it is best to position your
puppet on top of yourself.
Act 4 can be used defensively similar to Act 1 or in
conjunction with Act 6 for maximum damage.
( Picture Example )
Act 6: Crisis
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Can stop Smash
-
Breaks Defense and Counterattack
-
Utilizes the radius around the puppet
-
Hits multiple targets
-
Can miss if targets move out of range
A more appropriate name for Act 6 is ‘The Best Setup Move in
the Game.’ Act 6 is terrible for defending yourself and you have better moves
for pulling enemies out of Defense or Counter. Instead, if you’re in a crowded
room with enemies spread out, use it to pull enemies into one spot. Enemies hit
by Act 6 will stay on the ground for a second, allowing you to use Act 4 or Windmill
to great effect.
Arguably the best First Attack but you have better options
for offense and defense otherwise. Be cautious if enemies are too far spread
out.
Act 7: Climactic Crash
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Can stop Smash
-
Breaks Defense and Counterattack
-
Utilizes a line from the puppet, limited by the
player’s radius
-
Hits multiple targets
-
Can hit twice if target is knocked back into the
line
Act 7 is just a beautiful attack that deals an insane amount
of damage. Always try to aim Act 7 from the side of a player rather than
directly in front of the player. The reason for this is to prevent the player’s
radius from canceling Act 7 prematurely. Due to its charge time it’s best to
use this attack as the first attack. It is advisable to unsummon your puppet
after using Act 7, as Act 7 breaks your connection with your puppet, puts them
a fair ways away from you, and often puts them right next to enemies.
Act 7 is a great First Attack if enemies are in a line or
are simply too spread out for Act 6 to be effective. Nothing really combos well
with Act 7.
( Picture Example )
Act 9: Invigorating Encore
-
Can stop Smash
-
Breaks Defense and Counterattack
-
Allows your puppet to fight without your control
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Requires a full spirit gauge to use
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Utilizes the radius around the puppet
-
Hits multiple targets
Act 9 hits and aggros all enemies around it and gives your
puppet its own AI. Have a strong Act 1 and Act 2 for this as your puppet will
try to use these skills on its own. While in this mode your puppet recharges
its skills faster and deals more damage. You can take control of your puppet
again with your Control Marionette skill while still enjoying your extra damage
and faster skill recharge.
Act 9 is the most painful skill to train and actually is not
great on its own unless you are effective in combat without your puppet. It’s
advisable to get it early primarily for training purposes and to only start
using it after you have started picking up other combat skills such as Melee or
Archery. Otherwise keep your puppet on its strings with Control Marionette.
There is no appropriate or inappropriate time to use Act 9.
Bring it up whenever there is a tough battle that would benefit from extra
damage.
There are lots of little tidbits and specific areas that are
useful to know but that would take up too much time to explain in a guide. Be
mindful of your positioning, your puppets positioning, and have fun in the
world of Erinn.
When in doubt Basic Attack, Basic Attack, Basic Attack, Act
1.
When there’s an impossible situation Act 7, Unsummon, Play Dead
or run before the enemy sees you!
1 comment:
Its a good Guide and I agree with you on everything you said. nicely done
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