This HD video is narrated PVP footage of my level 12 Rogue in a Black Garden warfront (queued solo) in the MMORPG Rift, Patch 1.11.
Here is the spec used in the video:
http://rift.zam.com/en/stc.html?t=0MfNp.v0zk.m
(Note that for the 10-19 bracket I recommend moving the point out of Repelling Shot to max out Keen Eye)
As discussed in the video, the Marksman tree has excellent kiting/strafing mechanics. If you are looking for more information on how to strafe, please see my video guide on strafing and keybinding.
My main character is a Rank 3 level 50 Warrior. I’ve been playing around in the 10-19 warfront bracket with Justicar Cleric and Marksman Rogue for my first alt. So far I have participated in about a dozen warfronts with my Rogue, and to my surprise, I have found that I can influence the outcomes of warfronts on my RDPS Rogue as effectively as my melee Cleric.
Taugrim's MMO Blog 
Awesome display of what a good marksmen can do. I love how you strafe kite like that. Keep these videos going! See you tomorrow!
My second post and once again it’s a question about what you plan to do.
My alt is currently a Marksman/Riftblade/Bladedancer(0) and I kinda enjoy him, so hopefully you chose that alt so you can keep updating us on your thoughts on the spec, otoh I have a melee cleric alt as well, but so far at lower priority =)
The question I have is how far you plan to go up the Ranger tree (for which key talents/effects) and if you feel going for Rift Scavager is worth it, also in what order of priority you would advance up the trees.
I’d like something like this on the support souls once the points allow it:
http://rift.zam.com/en/stc.html?t=0MfNp..VG.Vcbh
Perhaps add crippling shot (but it seems kinda redundant and not really needed in this build?), or go on up the RS tree and get ruthless stalker to improved rift guard (or barrier?). Those bonuses and stalker phase could be neat? Also wouldn’t it be fun to kite, kite, kite, shadow stalk for the bonuses, repelling shot, kite, kite…
Regards,
/Patrik
The question I have is how far you plan to go up the Ranger tree (for which key talents/effects) and if you feel going for Rift Scavager is worth it, also in what order of priority you would advance up the trees.
Perhaps add crippling shot (but it seems kinda redundant and not really needed in this build?), or go on up the RS tree and get ruthless stalker to improved rift guard (or barrier?).
12 points in Ranger at most. Still thinking through it.
or go on up the RS tree and get ruthless stalker to improved rift guard (or barrier?). Those bonuses and stalker phase could be neat? Also wouldn’t it be fun to kite, kite, kite, shadow stalk for the bonuses, repelling shot, kite, kite…
Yes I am planning on going up RS over 20 points for the buffs, survivability, and bubbles.
I don’t like Repelling Shot by the way. 3m range is so short, and most of the time I will be out of that range.
Are you just using basic leveling gear or twinking a bit on this alt? just curious if your gear is playing a bit into your PvP experience with the marks soul.
I have a blue bow from winning 5 BG matches, crafted green gear, and basic runes.
I don’t have and will not bother to get the blue gear from planarite/rifting.
Gear at this low bracket for RDPS is not as important as for MDPS, and I suspect that may always be true, given that MDPS and healers tend to get hit the most.
New PvP changes are now out. Two major systemic changes are how DR stacks (thank god) and the bifurcation of CC effets into movement CC and Stuns/Mezz/etc… All effects are capped at 8 seconds, second application within 30 sec is half duration and third will be immunity for 30 seconds. I dont know what to think. I think the diminishing returns to snares and roots will hurt the Riftblade, but being able to move freely might help as well.
It will be a brave new world to say the least.
4/28 PVP balance update post:
http://bit.ly/lYWTAS
Another great vid Taugrim. Your movement and awareness were great as usual. Your team seemed pretty competent too. MM is a fun spec but I always felt it didn’t pack enough punch. Once you get used to using a pedestal correctly (i.e with a clear field of fire, plenty of targets, good distance away and not too much issue of losing LoS) you can dish out that little bit more 5CP –> Pedestal + Bullseye —> Deadeye shot. The problem is that swift shot and empowered shot don’t really apply any pressure that a single HoT can’t out heal so timing your burst is key to getting any results (against a healed target). Enemy melee characters are a doddle with MM, and it only gets easier with Getaway. Ranged I found was a mixed bag, without any interrupts/cc (you’d need 16 points in Ranger to get Concussive Blast, and that requires combo points + its on a 30sec CD) against casters you can have some issues, Hit and Run + 2 x Empowered + 4CP Deadeye tends to work though.
I agree with your point about Repelling Shot, I dropped it from my build by level 19. Range too short and doesn’t really do enough when you use it (and its not blocked/dodged/parried). I’m not totally convinced about RS sub spec. A lot of the moves are melee, so won’t be used much. Stalker phase only applies its damage buff after you use ports that blink you behind your target, which isn’t really where you want to be and Guardian phase only really has limited use as a flag carrying tool. The mobility in RS is good but with 35 meter range and OTD on a 20 second CD + hasted shot + hasty departure + swift shot you already have pleny of mobility in your aresnal. Rift Barrier and Ruthless Stalker however do look like very nice buffs and depending on how deep you go Rift Prison is a good control tool.
I’d recommend having a look at NB. Scourge of Darkness is amazing, especially combined with Strafe, you also get a snare in the form of Twilight Force, and a silence from Smother. Heat Retention also makes for some very bursty finishers. And ofcourse the weapon enchants, stealth and the damage buff from opening with Dark Malady +15% to finishers and CP builders are all pretty tasty too.
In regards to the patch notes, I think they look good overall. I don’t think snares should ever be on diminishing returns or immunity timers though, and knockbacks/roots should have shorter immunites. The changes to damage reduction stacking and the change to Pyro GoS looks good though.
MM is a fun spec but I always felt it didn’t pack enough punch
That was the same feedback I got when asking about MM on a thread on the Rogue forum:
http://forums.riftgame.com/showthread.php?178227-Just-rolled-a-Marksman-Rogue-1st-impression-in-PVP-is-positive-(video)
I’d recommend having a look at NB.
I will take a look, you provided a lot of great info and I have a lot to learn.
Good video Taugrim, I liked how you talked about positioning as a priority over nuking in most cases. The marksmen that have done me over the worst have been the runners:)
I really think you should stick with the rogue, it’s a nice contrast in playstyle to your warrior. You can switch up when you get bored/frustrated with the other. Plus as you gain more talent points I’d think you could play quite aggressively with that too?
Would you be going high enough to get the memory capture talent? I’d wager some creative tactics could be used with that^^
Would you be going high enough to get the memory capture talent? I’d wager some creative tactics could be used with that
Not sure what my endgame spec will look like, but MC I would probably not get as I have a lot of mobility as-is.
THank you Taugrim – you are finally playing my class! I look forward to learning from you.
/salute
Oh and looking forward to World PvP ;)
Hi Taugrim,
Do you have any comments on healers in pvp, and any interesting specs you think may be an interesting challenge while still viable? I know you aren’t currently playing a healer, but I guess I’m going to pick RIFT up today and give it a whirl. I enjoyed the brief experience I had in beta and your positive comments re: RIFT have kinda swayed me into giving it a thorough shot. I essentially only play healers in games(legitimately), and I know I need to actually get hands-on to find out what direction I would like to go, but any “ground-level” info(from the perspective of someone being healed) you could provide would be a great benefit.
Thanks
After reading Cas’ input on general cleric and taking in some more information, as well as looking at the trees I have decided to start with Warden and most likely take on purifier afterwards. Those two would seemingly provide a variety of healing and defensive abilities that may help keep me in combat longer and subsequently allow a much better output. Obviously, being level one, I have no clue if how I interpret the trees will translate the same in time, but here we go!
I essentially only play healers in games(legitimately), and I know I need to actually get hands-on to find out what direction I would like to go, but any “ground-level” info(from the perspective of someone being healed) you could provide would be a great benefit.
Clerics in Rift are the most diverse healing class I’ve ever seen. You can play melee Cleric, or RDPS, or AOE healer, or HoT healer, etc.
It’s a terrific class.
I’m also trying the same build for my alt and I like it, I did however use Saboteur for my third mainly to get Adhesive Bomb. This skill creates nice fang grabbing opportunities for my team. I also tend to use Fan Out more in BG to spread out the damage. Great vid as always, keep it up. I’m also interested in knowing if you use the same spec for leveling or are you planning to make a specific leveling spec either as range or melee.
I’m also interested in knowing if you use the same spec for leveling or are you planning to make a specific leveling spec either as range or melee.
Marksman/Ranger is a great soloer for questing/leveling. So the spec would work fine for both PVP and PVE. It’s probably not optimal for PVE dungeons but I will largely skip those while leveling.
What I dont like on Ranger/Marksman is that their are to many skills that are basically the same. You should try 32 Point Nightblade Spec if you like to play super aggressive.
I would only point points in Ranger for the Crit and ranged damage buffs, the ranged snare, and the pet. As you said there is a lot of redundancy between the trees.
Sorry for double post. I mean 32 Nightblade, 16-20 Marksman and rest in Infiltrator.
I have just rerolled Marksman Rogue instead of Cleric, and I found the same thing out pretty quickly, entering the Black garden as a fresh level 10 and still appearing within the top 3 of the damage Done rankings.
Fan out is awesome ability at stopping people from picking up the fang once it has been dropped. It hits loads at the same time!
Nice vid =D
MM definitely made a positive first impression. MM/Ranger in PVE is a nonstop killing machine once you get the Ranger pet heal.
hey Taugrim, this may be abit off topic but Ive got a macro problem im hoping for some help with. I have 2 interrupts with my champ/ para warrior (bash and flinching strike) however its seems as tho they are cast simultaneously as i had them in the same macro. im really comfortable with where ive bound that interrupt key and it would be ideal if i could get them 2 cast separately or situationally. Any thoughts or TIPS on this? any1?…
however its seems as tho they are cast simultaneously as i had them in the same macro
I can’t test this myself, but if that is the behavior you are seeing you can’t bundle them into a macro.
They share the same cooldown.
k thanks, i was just hoping that i didnt have 2 bind another key. Its all gravey tho.
Ranger is an obvious second job to MM, but I was looking at other options, and I noticed that in the first 5 points, Riftstalker has Unseen Fury, a talent that nets you +15% atk power. Would you take this over Eagle Eye (+5% crit) from Ranger while in the early levels, before you can reasonably take both?
Riftstalker has Unseen Fury, a talent that nets you +15% atk power. Would you take this over Eagle Eye (+5% crit) from Ranger while in the early levels, before you can reasonably take both?
Crit buff > AP buff
Also, the points in Ranger will help to get the pet heal and reach the 2nd tier Ranger ability Crippling Shot, which is a ranged snare.
fair enough, plus, I guess 15% at only ~50ap isn’t a whole lot. on the upside, rift stalk + knock back makes FCs go crazy, I’m loving it.
@Xandoras
I had the same issue with face slam and the voidknight one (forget name) it cast them both simultainiously, it seems they shre same cooldown and can’t be bundled togeter. Check both skills do not have the same CD length.
I’d have the 2nd one on a separate key, if your first is inside a long macro chain it might take a sec or two to get there and you may have missed your interrupt window by then.
Yea man its a pain. Even tho they do have different cd’s the synchronized cast kinda defeats the purpose…:(..thanks for the reply tho
Hey Taugrim,im looking foward to more rogue vids, can you set up a marksman macro guide as well? if at all possible.
My time has been limited and I haven’t decided on an alt class yet, so we’ll see.
If I continue to level up the Marksman to the next tier, I’ll post another video.
You still considering the cleric? With the even more recent rogue update it’s almost a certainty MM will be the new fotm and it wouldn’t surprise me to see them become more common than pyros. Clerics aren’t much better though.’lower brackets are swarming with them right now
I haven’t decided yet. I basically like playing MM, the mobile kiting is fun. You are probably right in that in 1.2 it will be much more popular.
I tried Bard this morning, liked it better than I was expecting. So I’m going to level the Rogue.
I play bard almost exclusively in Warfronts and enjoy the ability to feel like I’m helping my team. I’ve done rogue, so I was really hoping you’d choose cleric this time around, but I think you’ll have a lot of options with Rogue to keep you interested.
For Bard, I run this
http://rift.zam.com/en/stc.html?t=0MpcT.xIx0hqbokk.EIbkVoskoz
My dmg is completely inconsequential but the riftstalker adds ridiculous survivability and mobility.
The thing that’s most frustrating about bard though is that you are completely dependent on the aggressiveness of your team to push the action. Expose yourself even a little, and you’re going to get focused and destroyed. If your melee in particular are not aggressive, it can be pretty frustrating.
Expose yourself even a little, and you’re going to get focused and destroyed. If your melee in particular are not aggressive, it can be pretty frustrating.
Yes, I’ve already noticed this even in 10-19 bracket.
I can’t be too close to the front line or I’ll get focused, but if I’m not within 20m of someone I can’t use Cadence. Although I’m guessing at higher levels Motif of Regen and Coda of Restoration handle a lot of the healing in PVP.
I was think of running a hybrid Bard/archer spec, so that I can build CP’s when at 21-35m range.
While leveling I am using a Bard/RS/Ranger spec, with Quick Shot as a ranged CP builder.
Pets are your friends. If I get a pet on me, I’ll drag it away from the group to keep my people from killing it and I’ll just cadence that sucker till it drops. No need to use power chord since if I’m able to drop back, I’m usually unmolested and can stand still.
I sometimes even ask them before it starts to leave pets alone as they are my siphon of choice.
Hi Taugrim,
I was wondering about your key bindings, I’ve just watched your Warrior’s video and I got curious about what adaptations you made to play with the Rogue. Would you mind of posting them, like you did in the Warrior’s video page? Only the image would be extremely helpfull.
Looking forward to hear from you,
Ashvan.
Hi Ashvan,
Just so I don’t keep you waiting – I don’t have time to do that right now.
With 1.3 I already have on my list to update my Riftblade guide, make a Warrior video, and make Cleric video(s). And we’re on vacation so my non-beach time is limited.
Oh, I see. No problem, man. Thanks for the reply, I appreciate that.
Keep the nice job!
Hello I am markman rogue pvp but is this the build good for 29 pvp http://rift.zam.com/en/stc.html?t=0MfNp.v0zk.m