New to Gladiator, one question: Guard.

How exactly does it work? Do i just maintain it?

ya u need a shield first then have to keep hitting in battle.

You'll occassionally see a message saying "Your shield arm falls." That's your cue to hit the button again. Pushing it again before you get that message does nothing.

Shield wield rate = duration of guard in seconds.
When your arm falls you put it up again.
Auto-blocking will be introduced down the line, til then this is how it is.
Aegis Boon, Outmaneuver, and Deflection will overwrite Guard (and each other, but Guard cannot overwrite anything) if it is currently active and are essentially better versions of it.

Generally you want a shield with a high blocking stat, at least 80. Aegis and Deflection completely nullify damage if block is successful, so the defense stat doesn't matter as much as actually blocking + holding up the shield for long enough to be useful.

I find Shield of the Savage (or later/alternatively, Vintage Kite Shield or one of the 80 blocking Square shields) to be the best balance.

why am i getting *** on by everything? i am rank 20 with phys rank 17, everything i fight just destroys me. conjurers take less damage than i do in groups. all my gear is no more than 5 levels higher than mine, and i always keep guard up but it feels like i never block...

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Originally Posted by Fixy

all my gear is no more than 5 levels higher than mine, and i always keep guard up but it feels like i never block...

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1st: When dealing with gear, either have it at your rank or lower, or extremely high. Having it even only slightly above your rank makes the penalty harsher than the raw stat bonus can cover for.

2nd: Use Aegis Boon, (maybe) Outmaneuver, and (much later) Deflection over regular Guard when possible. Use a shield with a high Blocking stat: this is your % chance of blocking a hit. Having a shield with high wield numbers doesn't matter much if it never blocks for you. As I said in the post above yours, go for one of the Square Shields if possible. I wouldn't use anything with less than 80 Blocking, 70 at worst. As far as I know durability only drops on shield when you're actually using it so even a max rank one won't decay extremely fast.

And aside, class rank is the most major factor in damage calculations, much much moreso than gear or stats. If the CON was 3-4 ranks over you that'd be a large part of why they seem to take hits like a pro. Durability between classes only really differs on A) can I use a shield? and B) max HP.

Sadly i started as a glad and hated it so i changed to conj and never went back .But back to your question there planned to add a auto block so we wont have to keep pressing guard to keep it up ;)

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Originally Posted by SeraviEdalborez

1st: When dealing with gear, either have it at your rank or lower, or extremely high. Having it even only slightly above your rank makes the penalty harsher than the raw stat bonus can cover for.

2nd: Use Aegis Boon, (maybe) Outmaneuver, and (much later) Deflection over regular Guard when possible. Use a shield with a high Blocking stat: this is your % chance of blocking a hit. Having a shield with high wield numbers doesn't matter much if it never blocks for you. As I said in the post above yours, go for one of the Square Shields if possible. I wouldn't use anything with less than 80 Blocking, 70 at worst. As far as I know durability only drops on shield when you're actually using it so even a max rank one won't decay extremely fast.

And aside, class rank is the most major factor in damage calculations, much much moreso than gear or stats. If the CON was 3-4 ranks over you that'd be a large part of why they seem to take hits like a pro. Durability between classes only really differs on A) can I use a shield? and B) max HP.

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Thanks, do you happen to know under what setting in the chat log "Your shield arm falls" is under? It's not showing up for me and it's just a guessing game at the moment when to redo guard, sometimes letting an attack slip in for no reason. I really have looked all over chat log but cannot find it.

Off of memory, something relating to "effects on self" should be it. I know for sure that if you leave everything (to and from) (self/enemies) it should show.

If anyone is taking too much damage it would advisable to get some abilities from other classes.

Marauder: Bloodbath (6), Defender (10)
Pugilist: Second Wind (6)
Conjurer: Cure (4)
Thaumaturge: Sacrifice (4), Stygian Spikes (16), Siphon MP (20)
Lancer: Leg Sweep (16) (for stunning weapon skills)
Conjurer: Shock Spikes (10)

It shouldn't take too long to get most of these.

Remember that lock on mode can be toggled and that movement is faster with it off. Very useful for dodging weapon skills. Magic can hurt like a box of kittens so be prepared for it. Example: Fighting gnats it's best to hold back a little to make sure shield bash cancels out shock/thunder.

At level 38 there's a whole set of plate armor and it makes a huge difference. Level 36 grants the glorious skill of sentinel. It's a great tool for dealing with weapon skills or huge nukes that can't be blocked.