Waiting to see something that applies to the subject of SOLO melee tank. Everything so far has been for groups with horrid skill set ups.

well i go two hit back salvation and retribution on pally solo. ^^

This is the thing... what abilities benefit a toon wearing 100+ee same tier armor (as Tanker) solo'ing.
For a Barb/Fighter & Rogue (sticking to basics here) the best two abilities to use are: Powerstrike and Knockdown (KD only because ANY ROW)
Stats would be dependent on core & weapon:
SC + Sword = Pump Strength leaving 60 vita.
HC + Sword = no less then 75 vita and rest Strength.

As for Samurai... if using 100+ee same tier armor (as Tanker) solo'ing, it may NOT be ideal to use TwoHitBack, as it would not charge when taking alot of 0 dmg.
BUT... if using a stat armor with little EE... say like 50-75% ee... then it would be ideal, as it would charge up faster and ensuring more attacks. This goes for Paladin or HH
if used for that toon.

So... as a Tanker with good EE armor on, it is best to use abilities that charge up when attacking... and if you are melee'ing while solo'ing, then it maybe better to use Stat
armor when using abilities that charge up on "Hits Taken"

These are only a few things that I would like implemented into the guide, but, not a long winded way of explaining it.

Maybe solo'ing is more for Hybrid type builds... Melee/Heal... this way they can also be useful in a group when asked to join or maybe ppl join him/her?

if you use good EE tank armor, the hits while taken is pointless i feel
yea you can stumble across 3x eps and they are hitting hard, are you really goign to wait till it charges up to your liking to hit then run to town?
i dotn think thats a good hc move right there

as i mentioned double strike and power strike bc you loose some dmg using ee armor and stating vita.
a boost in killing is better, especially when your up against nasty eps
double strike, bc the most mobs that can spwn are 2, and with double strike, u can eliminate them both with one shot
power strike for those 3x nasty eps, very usefull to use on a nasty ep with an ability

having a heal chrm in the acc spot is a good idea
i am lucky to be able to use a nice wild heal on my hh , and from time to time, i woudl say alot, i heal myself in combat bc shrinerz can be very rare at time

This post was edited by Buf on Jun 20 2012 08:04am

If your going to melee solo using more than 2 abilities is a waste. The bulk of your mobs are going to be 1 monster, then 2, least seen is 3. Ideally for any melee solo build you want power strike because it's a single hit skill which is most efficient; a 200% charge does about 1500% over the max damage of the weapon. So you can use it at 50% with more weapons and still do great damage. 2nd skill that's been the most useful is Salvation. You don't need to stat any int unless your on a barb and u may want to put at least 5 into it, It works great with a crap heal. Using this set up with avg weapon and armor you would never have to town.

Going more than two abilities is crap on solo because of the speed in which you lvl and the use that you would get out of it when you take into account how you mostly will see 2 or less monsters. In many cases using a column or row ability, you will use it for just 1 monster.

2 abilities, i agree
but not necessary salvation. if your one of the lucky people out there with 200 ee plus mq armor,
you will notice the only time you really gain % is at ep's, when using an ability , when hits taken
i still say go double strike and power-strike, u can always buy shrines to heal yourself.

no its really not. my skill attacks 2 mobs the other is for pesky eps. then salv for heal it works amazing for me and my polearm set. i dont ever even use power shot or skills that charge on atk when i solo with melee. most of the time i get hit WAYY more than i can hit so it works better that way for me.



i cant say anything here i dont even use ee armors at all and salvation is the most underrated skill imo its like power strike for healing.





yes i agree here it is better for you using ee leathers to not use salvation. salvation is more ideal for new players who cant afford decent armors 80+ or noobs like me who tank with stat armors

This post was edited by SmokeyMcPot1990 on Jun 20 2012 02:58pm

i use EE leathers
i agree i was using sal for a while ( not on HH )


but i fidn its more convenient to have 2 abilities that do dmg than just one.
double strike and power strike help big time when coming up against 3x eps
use double strike, then use power strike on the mob that took the most dmg
its easier toMelee Tank 2x eps than 3x



This post was edited by Buf on Jun 20 2012 02:53pm

Excellent Feedback... Thanks...
Have a read on what I have about MELEE ONLY using Stat armors (Solo to two (2) people in group)
Also, can anyone tell me how many monsters are attacked when using Headhunter Abilities: Wildswing or Slapdash? Never achieved this toon.

BASIC SOLO MELEE ABILITIES:
NOTE: When you are NOT using Heal Mastery items, you DO need <=70% ee on your heal charms and <=50 base intelligence.
Even when using Salvation (based on sustainability and less regen time if you do NOT have shrines or want to buy them)

Most Common Melee:
... Barb, Rogue & Guardian: 2 Main Abilities = Retribution / Salvation (with Barb/Guardian, you can also choose a 3rd option: Powerstrike)
... Fighter: 3 Abilities = Retribution / Salvation & Powerstrike
... Samurai: 3 Abilities = TwoHitBack / Retribution & Salvation
... Paladin: 2 Abilities = TwoHitBack / Salvation (Healback when using EE armor, and also choose 3rd ability Powerstrike)
... Monk: 3 Abilities = TwoHitBack / Doublestrike / Salvation
... Ninja: 3 Abilities = Jumpattack / TwoHitBack / Salvation
... Headhunter: 3 Abilities = Wildswing / Slapdash / TwoHitBack

Uncommon Melee: (but achievable with some good effect)
Note: Stat wise, these two classes are better melee/healers than Monk & Ninja, based on Int/Dex ratios.
... Mage: 2 Abilities = Salvation / Retribution
... Warlock: 2 Abilities = TwoHitBack / Salvation

Heavy Weapon Users ONLY (excluding Quick Draw)
The only abilities that you require, are the ones that charge up by "HIT TAKEN".
IMPORTANT: Feeder (Retribution/Salvation) / Samurai + (TwoHitBack/Salvation) OR... IF your weapon is =< than 75% ee... USE Retribution instead of TwoHitBack.
Reason: Simple, there is a 100-150% faster chance to charge up those abilities (vs 2-3 monsters) and 50% faster chance vs 1 monster
compared to "Charges with Weapon" abilities.

Q: Why use Powerstrike?
A: Great Damage output, very good vs Strong Evil Presence, and if using weapons with less than 75% enhanced effect

Q: Why use Retribution?
A: Again, same as powerstrike, also, it has a faster chance to charge up when facing more than 1 monster.

Q: Why use Salvation? / Why use Salvation over Healback after passing Paladin?
A: This is more of a personal comment based on solo'ing 98% of the time with junk-average gear.
... Salvation can be used on a person (front/middle or back), Healback (Back row only), also when using stat armor, you
... take more hits, so you are charging up effectively at the same rate, IF not faster vs 2+ monsters. As a Paladin, I would
... still use Salvation UNLESS I am using <= 75% ee armor, then I will use Healback.
____________________________

BASIC SOLO TANK ABILITIES:

Most Common Melee:
... Barb, Fighter & Rogue: 2 Main Abilities = Powerstrike / Knockdown (Maybe 3rd option for Fighter & Barb: Retribution)
... Guardian: 3 Abilities = Powerstrike / Knockdown & Salvation (2 base points in Salvation)
... Samurai: 3 Abilities = TwoHitBack / Powerstrike & Retribution (or Salvation)
... Paladin: 2 Abilities = Powerstrike / Healback & Revenge (2 base points in Revenge)
... Headhunter: 3 Abilities = Wildswing / Slapdash / TwoHitBack

Uncommon Melee: (but achievable with some good effect)
Note: Stat wise, these two classes are better melee/healers than Monk & Ninja, based on Int/Dex ratios.
... Mage: 2 Abilities = Salvation / Retribution
... Monk: 3 Abilities = TwoHitBack / Doublestrike / Salvation
... Ninja: 3 Abilities = Jumpattack / TwoHitBack / Salvation
... Warlock: 2 Abilities = TwoHitBack / Salvation
End Note: These abilities have not changed much, that is because they are robed characters and will take dmg more often than Medium/Heavy Armor weilders.

its random
say your in a full group and you have your slapdash charged high,
you wait to you see 8 monsters
use it and you have a chance of hitting random amt of them

say you use it in a solo run, you come across 3x eps and use it
you will either hit all, or 2 of them, or just one

its sort of a gamble, but it is a HH ability and you get more of a bonus to it for each stat pt

using other chars abilities is much more useful to me when solo even though of the less amt of % i get for each stat point
i rather know for sure im hitting at least 2x mobs, or 1 mob 2x times ( double-strike ability )
instead of taking the gamble and trying to hit for more than 1 with slap dash

This post was edited by Buf on Jun 20 2012 09:07pm