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Poll > The Rogue Caster Guide > Tired Of Being Slow? Get Kwik.
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Jan 2 2008 11:47pm
Hello! hand.gif

Before I start, I would just like to say this will probably be one of the longest guides you ever choose to read. Though if you take the time to do it, you'll spend hours less time actually leveling your character.

I thought it was past time for me to post something I've been working on, on and off, for the last few months. I wanted the chance to test out the differences that Season 5, Season 6, and Season 7 all had to offer by using roughly the same character. I've found that the Rogue Caster, if build properly , is a very powerful character. It can be THE most powerful character. It's speed and usefulness is only rivalled by builds that posess certain overpowered items in Ladder Slasher. (The Intrasiege Club, the 100k FG heavy armor, Ridiculous lvl 55 melee weapons)

You will see in the above parenthesis that I have stated that only certain melee builds can rival this character. No Magician, or Fighter/Barbarian Caster, can rival this character.

Reasons why:

Even when putting all of your stats into Intelligence, ALL Rogue Casters can do levels 1 to 15 as melee characters with simple gear. Magicians usually cannot go that far, and Rogue Casters can go a lot farther! wink.gif

As a Rogue Caster, you have the advantage over cookie cutter characters of being able to play both the start of the climb and end of the climb as the strongest type of character. Melee characters have an advantage at earlier levels, you've got that covered. Casters consistently level quicker at higher levels, and you of course can do that, too.

A side-note about this build: It has a very high efficiency versus Well Bosses at high levels. You're able to pick up and save non-magical items, and well them later when you're high level and have plenty of stat points to take down the Well Bosses.


Rogues are the optimal class for the Melee Caster.


Reasons why:

Rogues have the ability to use all of the different weapon types. One of the many reasons why this build is capable of all that it is; is because if you can achieve certain multi-stat weapons, you will go a lot farther than without them, and a lot faster! Wouldn't you hate to buy or find one of these treasured items and be unable to use it? wink.gif

Rogues start with more Intelligence (very important), and Dexterity (largely important).
-Intelligence is important for the mid-game and end-game part of the build. It adds a defensive bonus to your character when you square off against Caster Enemies, and of course it also adds all of the Offense needed for Caster part of your climb.
-Dexterity is important for all parts of the climb. It adds to your ability to achieve critical hits during the melee part of the climb, and it adds to your defensive properties at all times.


Alright I'm tired of talking. Let's start leveling. banana.gif

Every build in Ladder Slasher maintains the same constant: you can get out from your character only what you put in. There are few things needed to make this build successful, but there are a LOT of things you can add to the mix to make it more powerful, and a faster leveling experience.

Step 1: Create your character. Name it something Super Sexy, maybe Rogue Caster related, to show everyone how much ass you're going to kick and how kwikly you plan on doing it.

Step 2: Choose Rogue as your class.

Step 3: Stat Usage.

...uh oh...We are now at the point where it's appropriate to collectively scratch our heads and debate on how to use our bonus stat points. No need to debate, put them all into Intelligence.

Why?

Because I said so. Actually, because they would be wasted anywhere else. You have enough Strength to do your Melee portion, and the Dexterity and Vitality are at appropriate levels to level your character comfortably. You need the Intelligence for the Defense Bonus, and to inflict the MAXIMUM DAMAGE that you can at the end of your climb. To save a few minutes on the start of the climb is not worth giving up an hours worth of time, or more, which is exactly what you'd be doing if you put your stat points anywhere else.

Every single time your green bar fills up and empties again, add your gained stat point to Intelligence!!!

Rogues start with 25 Intelligence. After the bonus 10, you'll have 35. Put all 71 additional into Intelligence, you'll have 106. If you get 30 on each your Weapon and Armor, you'll have over 160 which will work just fine.

Step 4: Play already!

Take a deep breath. It's time to get serious. As a Rogue Caster, you have the ability to use the starting stats of a Rogue to your advantage, and use melee attacks at level 1 and go as far as you feel like it.

The Easy Levels -- (Level 1 to Level 15)

Weapon
Enhanced Effect is the most importat stat on Weapons for the Melee portion of the climb. Get a Tier III weapon (Level 0) with 50% Enhanced Effect. Do the same for level 5, also. You can also get by with a level 10 weapon with the same amount of Enhanced Effect, if you do yourself a favor and get the Charm and Armor required to make this work.

Armor
For Armor and Charm, I suggest ONE Life per Kill item, and the other should be a Max Life item. As far as amount goes, you get what you put in. The more of the stat you get, the better it will work. For Life per Kill, I suggest at least 50LpK, but closer to 100LpK and above will yield the best results. For Max Life, 100-200+ is necissary, the more the better.

Charm
For Armor and Charm, I suggest ONE Life per Kill item, and the other should be a Max Life item. As far as amount goes, you get what you put in. The more of the stat you get, the better it will work. For Life per Kill, I suggest at least 50LpK, but closer to 100LpK and above will yield the best results. For Max Life, 100-200+ is necissary, the more the better.




The Early Levels -- (Level 15 to 25)
Weapon
Enhanced Effect is the still the most importat stat on Weapons for the Melee portion of the climb. Get a level 15 weapon with Enhanced Effect, at least 80% but closer to and above 100% will yield best results. This way, you can keep the fast pace and not regen, or regen only a few times per level. At level 20 and beyond, you will need at least 100% Enhanced Effect on your items. The more you get, the easier this is going to be.

Armor
For Armor and Charm, the one and one trick of Life per Kill and Max Life will only work if your stats are relatively high. This means over 100 Life per Killand close to or over 500 Max Life. You will now need much more important stats such as Strength and Dexterity, or a combination of both.

CharmFor Armor and Charm, the one and one trick of Life per Kill and Max Life will only work if your stats are relatively high. This means over 100 Life per Killand close to or over 500 Max Life. You will now need much more important stats such as Strength and Dexterity, or a combination of both.

In short, if you have the FG, look for items with a combination of the stats, such as Strength+Max Life or Dex+Max Life etc. If you're working with limited FG, then focus on one item with high Life per Kill or Max Life, and one item with high Strength or Dexterity.


Sidenote-If you have massive FG at your disposal and are trying this build, then the levels will be a little off. You'll be able to go much farther, much faster. Generally, the Middle Levels of this build are from 15 to 25, but they can go as far as 40 to 45 if you get Massive Enhanced Effect on your weapon, and Dexterity, Strength, and Life Mods on your Charms and Armors.

Okay. Back to leveling.




The Middle Levels -- (Level ~25 to Level ~40-55)

Weapon
From this point forward, most people will have to Cast Magical Attacks as their primary source of offense. This means that Intelligence is now the primary stat needed on your weapons. Get as much of it as you can, if you're forced into only being able to afford a solo-stat item. Enhanced Effect can still play a major role on your weapons. If you have a moderate amount of it (50%-100%) then you can use Melee attacks when your opponents health is low and you are comfortable finishing off the opponent without risking death. If you start Casting at level 35, you will have ~2000 Magic. If you can save ANY of it by using Melee attacks, you will make leveling a lot easier on yourself.

Aim for: 40+ Intelligence (if solo mod), or 20-25+ Intelligence and 100% Enhanced Effect.

Armor
From this point forward, most people will have to Cast Magical Attacks as their primary source of offense. This means that Intelligence is now the primary stat needed on your Armor.

Aim for: 40+ Intelligence

Charm
From this point forward, Enhanced Effect is now the primary stat needed on your Charm. While 100% works fine for these levels, the more you have, the more damage you'll do/the less magic you waste = the faster you level.

Aim for: 100-150%+ Enhanced Effect


Side Note From here until level 71, this character is primarily played like the Magician. You cast Spells as first priority, so the dominant stat needed (Intelligence on Weapons and Armors) and Enhanced Effect on Charms) will not change. Stats that you sought to acquire earlier to help with Melee leveling can play a big role here if are able to get Enhanced Effect on your Weapons.

Life and Magic Mods are still very helpful. Per Combat Round/Per Kill are insanely valuable, as they allow more battles and for battles to last longer. There's no real suggested limit as to what to get here, if you can get them: JUST DO IT! wub.gif

Dexterity is important, if you can get some of it on your gear you'll be able to withstand more damage, and deal more melee damage if you choose to continue on that route. Strength is only important if you can get Enhanced Effect on your Weapon as it will boost the damage. So if you are unable to get any Enhanced Effect on your Weapon, then Strength isn't needed at all.

Okay. Back to leveling.

If you read this line, PM me within 30 minutes of this post being made for free FG

The End??? -- (Level 55-???)

I chose to title this "The End" because once you hit level 55, you are unable to gain any more stats/gear. Follow the basic outline above to determine what stats you need and how much of them is appropriate. Here, I will outline the differences in the build based on the differences of gear that can be used.

I would like to thank my friend Robbie, TKSBigDunn21, for helping me with this portion. I will compare his gear (which is pretty advanced, VERY capable) to the gear that I have used to test this build, in order to show you the positive and negative differences.

He and I follow the same Low Level strategy as all Rogue Casters should. [Enhanced Effect on Weapons, Melee and Life Mods on Charms and Armors.]

For high levels, he has obtained primary stats on his gear. This is a glimpse at what he uses to work towards level 71 once he has moved into the Middle Stages and beyond:

(All stats are from perm link)

Mystical mithril sword
Level Req: 25
Damage: 13 to 131

+50 Intelligence
+44 Max Life
+1 to 30 Magic per Kill


This follows the principle idea of Intelligence first, with Life and Magic mods being used to support.

Mystical tempered leather armor
Level Req: 45
Defense: 25 to 75

+61% Enhanced Effect
+2 Strength
+50 Intelligence

Same as above, with one key difference: Notice the high defense? Enhanced Effect on Armors increases the defensive properties tremendously. This lets my friend stay in battles longer because he takes less critical hits, and damage altogether.

Mystical fire XIV
Level Req: 55
Spell Damage: 158 to 421
Magic Cost: 135

+131% Enhanced Effect
+32 Strength
+4 Magic Regen

Nothing out of the ordinary here. Just a kickass charm with a little bonus: He has no Enhanced Effect on his Weapon like suggested, but the Strength that he does have enables him to finish off enemies close to death.

Robbie has done very well with his Rogue Caster, he can now level faster than he did with his Melee character, and he spent less FG too! Good work, Robbie!


[put on some dark glasses to shade yourself from all the brightness coming your way]


And now I will show you what I have used to test this build. This is just an example of finding gear that works well with each other. Items like this still do exist, and are traded but not often. Don't expect to find these types of items often. They are extinct.

Mythical tempered diamond dagger
Level Req: 45
Damage: 120 to 210
+150% Enhanced Effect
+31 Intelligence
+614 Max Life

+10 Magic Luck
+2 Critical Strike

Intelligence first. Enhanced Effect to use Melee attacks to finish off weak enemies. Life Mods to keep me in battles. Magic Luck, I'll explain that luxury later. wink.gif

Mythical tempered leather armor
Level Req: 45
Defense: 25 to 76
+112% Enhanced Effect
+28 Dexterity
+45 Intelligence
+284 Max Life

+18% Experience Gained

Intelligence first. Enhanced Effect to add to Defensive properties of my Armor. Life Mods to keep me in battles. Dexterity for added Defense, and to add the possibility of me getting a few Critical Strikes if I melee. Oh and Experience Gained...that's a pretty nice stat too if you can get it. How did I forget to mention that Ladder Slasher doesn't have Torches or Anhilius'? ohmy.gif

Magical ice XIV
Level Req: 55
Spell Damage: 240 to 288
Magic Cost: 135
+261% Enhanced Effect

Uh...moving on.


What to do, what to do???

Well, now that you leveled up your character kwiker than ever before, you have some choices.

-You can go attempt the Master Quest, pass it like I do all the time to the point where you never get old. (Gotta get those guild points banana.gif)
-MAGIC FIND!!!

Since you are a Caster character at high level, you have an advantage of consistent damage against Well monsters. Park your character at level 70, kill kill kill to pick up non-magical items. Throw them in the Well and cross your fingers. If you get too close to level 71, intentionally kill yourself back down to the start of level 70. Rinse and repeat, it works! If you find something nice, PM me before you put it up for trade! Magic Luck is great if you can get some paired with Intelligence on gear, but don't sacrifice killing power for it!


The End? Will this post never end? ohmy.gif

The End: I spent a couple hours off and on writing this, and spent hundreds of hours testing it out, so I really hope it helps you. Let me know if you like or dislike it. And if you think I should change something, screw you! [PM or post and we'll revise this and repost] wub.gif

Too much time reading. Go level and have some fun! banana.gif
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Jan 2 2008 11:47pm
Excellent work!! thumbsup.gif
The old ones were outdated, and thanks for mentioning me Jay wub.gif
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Jan 2 2008 11:48pm
This is great! I doubt anyone can make a Rogue Caster like you though.
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Jan 2 2008 11:49pm
Quote (TKSBigDunn21 @ Wed, Jan 2 2008, 10:47pm)
Excellent work!! thumbsup.gif
The old ones were outdated, and thanks for mentioning me Jay wub.gif


oh you snot. first post to you wink.gif

But yes,, a fantastic guide my friend,

i followed your advise carefully when you gave it to before, and it is alot faster then normal meele unless you have some really good gear.
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Jan 2 2008 11:51pm
Excellent work Jay!

This guide should help all the ppl that wants to start a rogue caster that won't suck.
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Jan 2 2008 11:52pm
Nice Accomplishment.
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Jan 2 2008 11:53pm
give the man a sticky

great guide got everything covered.
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Jan 2 2008 11:54pm
great guide, id like some more cons and pros to why rogue caster over fighter/barb caster though, pmed you a question that i have happy.gif

Quote (JayKwik @ Thu, Jan 3 2008, 12:54am)
Quote (Avalon57 @ Thu, Jan 3 2008, 12:53am)
is the wide variety of weapon availability worth sacrificing damage mitigation from heavy armors

this is from the fighter/barb caster point of view of course.

Thanks


If you can go the EE/INT route, it is well worth it unless you have the sickest heavy armor imaginable. Post your questions in the topic so all can learn biggrin.gif




This post was edited by Avalon57 on Jan 2 2008 11:55pm
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Jan 2 2008 11:55pm
Great guide but doesn't seem good for people with less then 500 fg.
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Jan 2 2008 11:56pm
Hm...hello Rogue Casters, byebye Melee Rogue?

Thanks. smile.gif
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