Fight or Flight, the PvP Response

One thing a lot of newer players have difficulty with is PvP. Its not quite the same as killing mobs. It can be as much, if not more rewarding to bathe in the blood of the scummy lighties as it is to slaughter a horde of grazing tatoramos. But the trick is knowing how to go about doing it.

First things first: prepare yourself to get raped. It will happen. There will always be someone with enough money, gold, lapis and items to squish you like a grape, no matter how tough you are. Some of the players of Shaiya, on both sides, play ONLY for PvP. That means that they gear all of their toons to that specific purpose. Most of us, however, are more interested in the entire game, rather than just one facet, therefore, we build our characters to handle a variety of situations. Granted, that means the majority of players are more adaptable throughout the game than the PvPers, but it also means that the hardcore player-killers have an edge.

Another very important thing to consider when deciding to PvP: where? All of the PvP maps have different standards if you will. In 1-15, it is common, if not almost necessary, to have enchanted gear linked with dual lapis or lvl 5 lapis, along with some healthy doses of nos. There is actually a reason behind this power madness in 1-15. That is where the numbers make the most difference. Everyone's stats are low enough, the slightest bonus could mean the difference between a resounding victory for you, or your cold corpse lying on the ground.

In 20-30, nos is heavily frowned upon. As a matter of fact, there is an 'unwritten rule' that the people who use nos in 20-30 quickly find themselves without a party. It is a type of treaty by both factions to keep the nos limited to 1-15. Not to say there is no nos in 20-30, but it is something that will get you kicked from a raid pretty quickly. The action in 20-30 is quieter and more subdued, since most people get the rank they want (or get fed up with PvP) in 1-15. The 20-30 area is where you will usually find 2 small groups struggling against one another for the altar. Sometimes the Fury outnumber the Lights, and the Light castle is camped, other times, the Lights have the upper hand, and you can't get out of town to save your life.

1-60 has become deserted. Besides the infrequent events that go on there, the only time you will see any lighties is if you happen to be in D1 or D2 and run into some (or if you go looking around their castle/portals to the dungeons). 1-60 used to be the proving ground for anyone who wanted to stake a claim as being a 'bad-ass', but since the jungle and desert have opened up to both factions on a continual basis, the real action for high levels is there. 1-60 is mainly a farming map, centered around the 2 dungeons now. It is also useful for grinding, if you are of the appropriate level, just be careful of the infrequent light parties in the dungeons.

Jungle/Desert are the main high level PvP areas. This is where all the time and effort you have put into making your character strong pay off...or not. For example, my pagan, Cruel_Passion, is pretty decent to my mind. Its rare that I find a mob I cannot handle, even if it takes me a potion or 2 to vaporize said mob. But I can get 1 shot easily in both jungle and desert. This isn't due to nos however. Nos is a waste of AP by the time you reach those levels (at least to my mind). What it is due to is the gear of the characters, not to mention many of the people who haunt these maps are at least HM if not UM.

So what's the best way to handle PvP? Well, what I would suggest for those of you kind of new to it, find a party, or preferably, a raid. Don't volunteer that you are unsure of yourself, simply stay quiet and watch. See how the veterans handle themselves, maybe ask a question or two about gear. In 1-15, if you are having difficulty (or you get bored by the constant fighting over one hill like I do), take a run through Iron Blood. There is almost always some farmers out there, killing mobs for xp and lvl 1 lapis. These farmers tend to be weaker than the lightie shock troops, and some will even run at the first sign of a red flash on their map. They are the victims you need. They will teach you to track your opponent, how to handle them when they do something unexpected, how far you can push yourself, and your opponent, before you should turn around and get the hell out of there. There are no hard and fast rules about how to kill lighties, as each lightie toon is different. Some of their mages are so weak if you sneeze at them the will crumple, while others are as tough as any guardian I have ever seen. I guess the most important rule is to be flexible. Don't commit yourself completely, because things can change in an instant.

In 20-30, there are also farmers, usually up in the northwest corner of the map. That is because there is a lightie quest for them to kill certain mobs there. These are another group that is easy pickings for the most part. But keep in mind, if you kill the weak ones enough times, they will call the strong ones down on you. Always have an exit strategy.

1-60 I wouldn't even really bother with. All that usually happens there is 2 opposing groups meet each other in a dungeon, and fight. The winners stay there and continue farming lapis, while the losers get in Guild Chat and Trade Chat and cry for help because the lights (or the fury) ganked them while they were grinding. Suddenly, the dungeon is swarming with lvl 55+ toons ready to destroy anything that moves. Its a big hassle for very little gain.

Jungle is a hotbed of violence. I can't count the number of times I have been blindsided by a lightie, or group of lighties, there. Sometimes, they will greet you and leave you be, but usually its KoS (Kill on Sight for those unfamiliar with the terminology). I have no real advice for going into the jungle, just be wary at all times, even if you are in a party.

Desert. Desert is a bit more calm than jungle...sometimes. You will see that there are fewer lighties who actively seek to poke you with sharp objects there, but they still are there. And do not expect any honor from your enemies. The favored tactic that I have seen over and over again, is to wait until one group is in the middle of fighting a group of mobs, then the other group descends on them like a plague. This is to cause confusion and disorientation to your opponents, and make it harder to target the invaders. And it works.

All in all, there is only one real thing you can do to succeed at PvP. Practice. The more you do it, the better you will become. For anyone interested in PvP, I recommend that you do it with HM characters, so you have at least a sliver of a chance. And besides that, the only bad thing that happens to a HM who dies is hurt pride. It doesn't cost you a res rune or anything. You will find that you slowly become more proficient at it, and with that comes a deeper understanding of the intricacies of lapising your gear and building your character. It will take time, but if you keep at it, soon you will find yourself sporting a chevron or better next to your name, and that adds up to extra stat points, which anyone should want.

That's about all I can think of at the current time, but I'm sure that Lyga or someone will have more input to add to this. I am not a PvP guru by any means, just an observer who has spent enough time getting my butt kicked to have learned a few things. Hope this helps you out some. NOW GO KILL THE DIRTY LIGHTIE BASTARDS!

The most important thing about PVP, and I cannot stress this enough: KNOW your opponent. This is especially important in 1-60 pvp. There is no point charging in to kill one lightie if there is a wave of lights rushing towards you. The only exception is if you plan on using a high dmg aoe skill like eraser, then you can take down some lights before you die. Another thing is to pick your targets. Don't just run into random lights and hack. Have an idea of their strengths, how hard they hit, what ele they have so you can counter, etc. I'll use myself as an example.

I know that RyuuJin (UM figther) wears fire armor. I also know that he averages 2.2k dmg per hit on me. I have water weapon and can do upwards of 2.8k dmg per hit. I also have higher dex than him, which provides more evasion. So naturally I pwn him .

On the flip side, if I see Extreme(UM fighter) coming towards me. I know he has all amror ele's, is enchanted up the ass, and does upwards of 3k dmg per hit. I run like hell and look for a weaker target while hoping that someone else attacks him and takes his attention away from me.

If you pick your targets wisely, not only will you have a better chance of surviving, you will also be able to get more kills before you inevitably go down.

Just like what Lyga said wait for some1 to atk the person ur targeting
if he/she dies then go ahead and atk cuz its likely they'll be back
if he/she barely gets a scratch then tell ur raid leader so u guys can bring em down

Trust me, I've tried to go Rambo plenty of times with bad experiences