Pistoleer Archive
Thread: Pistoleer and it's counterparts an FAQ based on my experiences.
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ZevMandara
Wed May 05, 2004 2:33 am
#1
Ever ask yourself, "now that I am a master pistoleer, what should I master now?" Well I have done it, so I'm going to post a bit here as to what I've experienced. I hope this info is helpful.
PISTOLEER AND ITS MELEE COUNTERPARTS:
Pistoleer/Fencer: There is a reason that many PvPers are doing this combination. Firstly, Fencer and Pistoleer combined aquire the most evasion of ANY profession - that being block - and they add a ton of it. Well over 100. Thus being said, a Fencer/Pistoleer is nearly impossible to hit. In addition to this, Fencer yields more combat defense than any profession - both ranged and melee. With that, the pistoleer's weakness in combat defense is quite subtly made up for. A person of this caliber is to be most feared in PvP and can also handle themselves quite well out on the field. This is one of the single most common PvP templates out there. In addition to this, the Fencer/Pistoleer yields +90 knockdown defense - a stellar number which almost makes you immune to a dizzy/knockdown attack. This is quite important in PvP, where there are many TKAs that will use their Unarmed Knockdown 2 you inevitably. Another important aspect of this profession is that you get two forms of stun damage, both ranged and melee, leading to ultimate destruction of anyone who dares to challenge a talented fighter of this sort.
Advantage Combo 1: Pistol Melee Defense 1, Dizzy hit 1: A good combo in PvP is to first make your opponent Dizzy with Dizzy Hit 1, then do pistol melee defense 1. Should the dizzy/knockdown stick, you will be almost guarenteed a victory.
Advantage Combo 2: Fencer Blind Hit: This helps a pistoleer quite a bit by significantly reducing your opponent's accuracy by blinding them. When used in conjunction by moving around as a pistoleer does, your opponent has a very minimal chance of hitting you. Stack on the dodge and this is a great combination.
Pistoleer/TKA: In spite of both professions being rather idiosyncratic in style, this is a fairly good PvP combo. TKA yields quite abit of melee defenses, and that helps out this template quite well. The TKA also have meditation, which at master will allow you to cure any disease, poison, bleed, or wounds. They also have the ability to powerboost, which gives them a significant boost to their HAM (usually +500 to all stats). This is significant for a pistoleer as they will not be needing to visit a medical center for wounds. Plenty of Knockdown defense is also yielded with this profession. The only significant downfall of the Teras Kasi is the fact that they only have one form of damage - kinetic - which is the easiest damage type to defend against. Almost every armor sold on the market today has at least 50% kinetic protection - Chitin, Ubese, Kashyyykian and Composite all have high kinetic resists.
Advantage Combo 1: Unarmed Knockdown 2: Use this attack before breaking out your weapon. If it works, you are almost guarenteed to win the fight. Hands down one of the most lethal attacks in the game in PvP.
Advantage Combo 2: Unarmed Blind, Unarmed Stun: As with Fencer, Blind will make an opponent practically worthless against a Pistoleer of this caliber. Add stun in there and their damage is reduced quite significantly. This is a little known trick in PvP, but stun is a very important state to inflict on a target.
Pistoleer/Swordsman: Consider this to be the custodian of PvE. Not only do you get the advantage of using a ranged weapon that's quite effective in PvE, you get the single most damaging close-ranged profession in the game. Not as stellar in PvP, this combo works best out on the field. Unfortunately, Swordsman does NOT yield very much defense at all, so a concern of this is that you will be rather defenseless as compared to a TK, and you get no stackable evasion. Another problem is that they attack different pools (pistoleer goes for health, swordsman to mind) and swordsman is the only profession in melee that gets absolutely no form of dizzy or knockdown. This is acceptable, however, as the heavy swordsman is designed to deal high amounts of damage, not focusing on finesse based attacks.
Advantage Combo 1: Fan Shot, Two Handed Area Hit: Fan Shot will draw a large mob of creatures to you if you are attacking the lair. If you use the area hit with swordsman when they draw closer, you will find plenty of dead things around you in minimal time. This also prevents accidentally attacking the lair and drawing out too many critters.
Advantage Combo 2: For you Rebels out there, ATSTs are weak to blast. All turrets are too. Using two-handed hit 3 to clean up those things will make you a valuable asset in base destruction. Using a pistoleer's skills to fan-shot the NPCs will make you absolutely invaluable.
Pistoleer/Pikeman: Pikeman is often considered the weakest of the melee professions for a few various reasons, and a pistoleer stacked with Pikeman can be considered inadequate in many cases. However, if used right, this can be one of the deadliest single PvP combos out there. Pikeman deal a high amount of damage, but they do not recieve any defenses that are worthwhile. Defense is the biggest concern for people of this caliber. The advantage of having this combo is the vast variety of attacks you can do that you gain by being both professions, but you gain nothing more than a TKA would, other than some great Nightsister lances that deal poison or disease damage. This is worth taking up if you believe you are skilled enough to handle this.
Advantage Combo 1: Polearm Knockdown 2: This attack is a dizzy/knockdown,which is quite handy in PvP. Another advantage of this that TKA does not have is that this can be dealt with electrical damage - great if you're fighting someone with high Kinetic Armor, such as Ubese.
Advantage Combo 2: Polearm Area Attack, Fanshot: This, as with swordsman, allows you to deal a nice amount of area damage without having to hit the lair all too much. Another good aspect of this is the high amounts of damage that both attacks do, making this one of the best combos for these combo professions.
PISTOLEER AND ITS RANGED COUNTERPARTS:
Pistoleer/Rifleman: Rifleman, as it is, is known quite well to be one of the single most volatile PvP professions in the game. Almost exclusively wasting the mind bar of it's targets, the Rifleman can dish out high amounts of damage. When teamed with pistoleer, it provides one of the most solid combinations in the game. The pistoleer's attacks and weapons really do not help this combination; however, it is the pistoleer's state defenses that make this combo so deadly. A rifleman/pistoleer becomes even more immune to a melee opponent with the various state defenses you gain, most important being knockdown defense, dizzy defense, blind defense, and so on. A rifleman with these sort of abilities is to be avoided at all costs.
Advantage Combo 1: Pistol Melee Defense 1, then run like the wind: One of the most imperitive things about rifleman is that they typically need to stay at a distance to be effective. If a melee opponent proves to confining and threatening to you, knock em down and run. It'll greatly improve your chances of surviving the skirmish than just simply kiting.
Pistoleer/Carbineer: Carbineer is known widely to be one of the strangest professions in the game. Carbines tend to dish out high amounts of damage to the opponent's action bar at the expense of your HAM. When teamed with a pistoleer, the carbineer's state-inflicting abilities can be used to your advantage; however, don't expect to do all too much unless you are buffed. A Carbineer yields minimalistic defenses, so don't expect all too much help from this category at all. Carbines do not yield any damage type that the pistoleer does not already have - energy, heat, and acid; and most carbines tend to havea very steep difference between minimum and maximum damage, thus being affected greatly by ranged mitigation.This ischallenging combination to do, but can be worthwhile if you do it right.
Advantage Combo 1: Crippling Shot: Using this ability from carbineer can inflict a stun or blinded state. After using this attack, switch to a pistol so you can move around freely with your dodge mods applied. This will help you not get hit, and provide a nice getaway from your opponents - giving you the room you need to attack.
Advantage Combo 2: Charge Shot: If a meleer starts charging at you, do this attack from carbineer. It's a nice ranged knockdown that will give you a good window to keep your distance from them.
Pistoleer/Commando: Commando isn't so much a profession that can be classified as many other professions in the ranged category as it is idiosyncratic in the way it works. Commando gives you a grand total ofeight special attacks throughout the whole profession. Four of them do not even work the way they should (heavy acid rifle tree), so arguably there are only four specials that are utilized as a commando. All this aside, Pistoleer and Commando is a great combination. Why? I mastered Commando in two days. Commando has a pistol known as the Launcher Pistol. Any and all pistol modifiers count to it, yet using it gives you heavy weapons experience, which is the only type of experience you'll need in Commando aside from combat experience. With this, you have opened yourself up to the world of Blast Damage with a pistol, and close ranged threat with a flame thrower.
Advantage Combo 1: Fan Shot on Lairs with a Launcher Pistol: A good piece of advice is to get buffs and get savage quenker missions on Dantooine. Group with a large group of people or an AT-ST for the Imperials out there, that way your challenge level will be dramatically increased. With this increase, the Savage Quenker Lairs will spawn 5 creatures at a time - as opposed to the normal 2. That leaves a total of 15 creatures a lair, which you are progressively fan-shotting. Keep using fan shot on the lair and one by one every quenker will fall and your experience will rack up.
Advantage Combo 2: Stopping Shot with Launcher Pistols on Turrets/AT-STs: This is the ultimate base killer. Spam Stopping Shot at Turrets and AT-STs and they'll fall faster than one can imagine. A master pistoleer/commando is one of the single best professions to use at base warfare (a common thing on my server).
PISTOLEER WITH OTHER PISTOL BASED PROFESSIONS:
Pistoleer/Bounty Hunter Pistols IV: This is one of the most dangerous and feared combinations in the game. Period. The bounty hunter pistols tree gives +50 to speed and +50 to pistol accuracy, a stellar number that is almost unheard of. In addition to this, the Bounty Hunter pistols tree yields one of the most single feared and deadly attacks that a pistoleer gains: The torso shot. This flame DOT shot when used in conjunction with a health shot two will make a person of this caliber nearly unstoppable. Another disticnt advantage of doing this profession with pistoleer is the fact tha tyou can deal direct mind damage. Eye shot is a great attack to the mind that blinds your target, and bleeding shot does a bleed to the mind. This is one of the single best combinations to do in PvP and a person of this caliber should be avoided at all costs.
Advantage Combo 1: Eye Shot, Pistol Melee Defense: Yep, you've heard it from me before. Knock em down, use the eye shot (which induces a state of blindness) and run.
Advantage Combo 2: Eye Shot, Bleeding shot: The bleeding shot provides a mind bleed, and the eye shot exclusively deals mind damage. These used in PvP become extremely deadly. Teamed up with a geonosian pistol and you've become one of the single most dominant forces in the PvP aspect of the game. Dealing mind damage with a stun weapon is the best single damaging combo in PvP, almost unarguably.
Pistoleer/Smuggler: This is a dirty combo (yes, the "dirty fighting" tree is quite accurate in the name), dealing some of the most annoying and disabling attacks in PvP. The smuggler's abilities include panic shot, which provides the user with a ten second delay; the low blow, which is a nice ranged knockdown; feign death, which when used right will prevent a user from being killed; and the last ditch, which is one of the highest Damage Per Second Attacks in the game that also stuns your opponent. The downside of this is that the smuggler trees do not give you any modifiers to your pistols, so you do not get the great mods that bounty hunters recieve, and will be fully dependant on pistoleer for the speed mods.
Advantage Combo 1: Low Blow, Panic Shot: Not only do you knock 'em down, you keep em down for 10 seconds. Need I say more?
Advantage Combo 1: Low Blow, Last Ditch , Suppression Fire 1, and Panic Shot: When I was a smuggler, this was almost an unbeatable combo. After you knock down your target, you hit them a couple times with alst ditch while running. Then hit them with a suppression fire 1 if you have ranged support IV, thus making them kneel; hit em twice with last ditch. If they arent dead by name, give them a panic shot so they can't do anything for 10 seconds. Try this combo yourself if you have smuggler - I've found it to be great.
PISTOLEER WITH SUPPORT PROFESSIONS
Pistoleer/Combat Medic: This is one of the deadliest PvP combos. A pistoleer that can get his or her hands on the poisons and diseases of a combat medic is not to be taken lightly. Combat Medics rely soly on chucking their poisons and diseases, which deal vast amounts of damage, and usually to a large amount of players. Pistoleer is the perfect accompanyment to Combat medic because it provides the ability to "finish the job" by picking off opponents quickly and efficiently, and pistols tend to have very low HAM costs to the mind. Against a single target, a CM/Pistoleer can use stopping shot to effectively finish off an opponent from a range. Againt a group, a pistoleer can use fan shot to pick off multiple targets. Against an unbuffed opponent, a Health bleed can be stacked onto the poison to provide a nasty way to drain one's health bar.
Advantage Combo 1: Hit and run: After hitting a single opponent with a poison, use stopping shot while running away from them and watch their pools drain.
Advantage Combo 2: Pistol Melee Defense 1 after Poisoning: The CM's survival is pivotal to winning the battle, and the CM must survive long enough for the target's poison/disease to almost completely drain their target pool. Pistol Melee Defense 1 provides a knockdown, giving you a window of opportunity to run away and avoid any potential entanglement up close. The longer they have the poison, they better off you are.
Pistoleer/Creature Handler: Once upon a time, the creature handler/pistoleer would be an unstoppable force in PvP, but with recent measures that the developers have placed, the Creature Handler is no longer so dominant. None the less, it's still a vital profession. When used with a pistoleer, your pets will have adequate support to allow them to gain you the experience and tank your targets as necessary. Ultimately, creatures will not survive without good support, and the pistoleer provides the perfect accompanyment to the creature handler.
Advantage Combo 1: Health Shot 2: Bleeding your target will allow your pet to deal constant damage to the target without you interfering too much. The bleed will effectively drain the target as needed, which helps out your pets, especially at lower levels.
Advantage Combo 2: Fan Shot: If your pet is at a weaker level, and you have the necessary means to survive a large attack (armor and buffs), then fan shotting the group of your enemies is a viable attack. It will allow your pet/pets to attack the group of creatures while they focus on you, getting you more handling experience.
PISTOLEER AND DAMAGE TYPES - WHAT DOES IT MEAN FOR ME?
A brief explanation of armor: Armor functions in various ways in the game. It's primary function is to be a limiting agent of damage of varying types. Galaxies on it's own has 9 different damage types, consisting of Energy, Kinetic, Heat, Cold, Blast, Restraint, Stun, Acid, and Electricty. Pistoleer has five damage types, and if you are a commando, you get 6 damage types. There are many different armor types, and they are explained quite well on the armorsmith board, but I will give you the basics of the most common PvP armor types.
Composite:
Average Base Resistance: 40-80%
Special Protection: Electricty (Although most sets will have Kinetic protection)
Weakness: Stun
Ubese:
Average Base Resistance: 10-30%
Special Protection: Kinetic (50-80%)
Weakness: Heat, Stun, Cold
Kashyyykian Ceremonial Armor:
Average Base Resistance: 10-30%
Special Protection: Kinetic (40-65%)
Weakness: Stun, Acid
What are the most common forms of Damage, in both PvP and PvE?: There is a variety of damage out there, and will be encountered with frequency. Here's a list that outlines the damage types and frequency of encountering it.
KINETIC: This is the most commonly encountered damage type in PvE. The vast majority of creatures will use this damage type. In PvP, this is also a common damage type, as there are only three melee weapons that do NOT do kinetic damage. All Teras Kasi Artists will use Kinetic Damage by default. This is the most simple and common form of damage in the game. Ubese and Chitin armor have special protection against this type.
ENERGY: This is also a common form of damage, as the majority of NPCs will use energy damage. Many good weapons use energy as their damage choice, such as laser rifles, scout blasters, laser carbines, and more. With recent developments in armor, however, this will not be a commonly encountered PvP damage type unless you are fighting a carbineer. The only armor with special protection against Energy is bone armor.
ACID: This is often a powerful and commonly encountered damage type. Most creatures that have a ranged attack will use acid damage as the type of damage dealt. This is a much more dangerous type of damage in PvP, however, with no armor having a special resistance to it unless the armorsmith uses acid protection layers, which are hard to make. Powerful scatter pistols, DX2s, DXR-6's, and Disrupter rifles all use this damage type, with most bounty hunters using scatter pistols as their preferred weapon. Commandos also have the Heavy Acid Rifle, but they are ineffectual and will not be seen often.
HEAT: This is a potentially deadly type of damage. Very few, if any NPCs, will use this type of damage as their primary choice, however this type is quite frequently encountered in PvP. The Commando's flame thrower uses this damage type, utilizing their weapons for ultimate close quartered destruction. FWG5 Pistols and EE-3 carbines also use this damage type, so this is one of the more common damage types. Mabari armor has special protection against this type.
ELECTRICITY: This is another common form of damage seen in PvP, as the Bounty Hunter's Light Lightning cannon uses this damage, as well as the Pikeman's Vibro Lance. This can be a dangerous type to go against, as the weapons that use this damage type have extremely high amounts of damage when used. Composite armor has special protection against this type.
COLD: This is probably the second least commonly encountered damage type in the game. SG82 rifles and Cryoban grenades use this type, and some NPCs will use those rifles and grenades. You will rarely see this damage type in game and will rarely have to go against it. Mabari has special protection against this type of damage.
BLAST: Blast damage is a fairly common damage type typically seen in PvP combat. Turrets and ATSTs are weak to this damage type, and heavy swordsmen and commandos get to utilize it. The deadly powerhammers that use this damage have some of the highest damages seen in the game and are ultimately destructive. Most NPCs will not use this damage, and creatures will not use it at all. Padded Armor has special protection against this type.
STUN: This is the most common damage type seen in PvP, and for good reason. No armor has protection against this, and layers that are made for this type are usually weak and hard to make. This damage type is known as the bane of allarmor, and for good reason. Weapons that use this that are commonly seen is the Fencer's Stun Baton, the Rifleman's Jawa Ion Rifle, and our own Geonosian Sonic Blaster. This damage type is not seen in PvE except in rare occasions.
RESTRAINT: This is the least commonly encountered damage type, but if this is used against you, chances are you will be dead quite soon. This is the damage choice of force powers used by Jedi and other force sensitive characters. Nightsisters will utilize this damage type in the form of Force Choke or Force Knockdown. No armor layer can be made to protect against this damage type, and the only armor that has protection against this damage type is Bone Armor.
These are the most common types of armor that you will have to contend with as a pistoleer. Notice that stun damage is highlighted throughout.
Now, in PvP, with armor factored in, that leaves our three most important damage types, Stun, Heat, and Acid. With the increasing powers of armor in the game these days, you must consider these factors when you fight another person. As a rule, Composite armor can have special stun protection - but it CAN NOT be higher than 45%. A Geonosian Pistol with 100-200 damage is thusly 45-90 damage with that type of protection, versus if you use a scout blaster with the same damage against the 80% base of this set will be a meager 20-40 damage. It's almost imperative that a pistoleer who desires to PvP must have a geonosian sonic blaster. A Tangle Pistol may suffice, but it's much slower with lower damage than the Geonosian pistol. PvP may vary from server to server, but it's something to keep in mind should you decide to PvP.
I don't want to PvP. I want to hunt. What armor should I get?: The most common mistake of hunters is that people tend to think that Composite is the answer to all questions in hunting. WRONG. Composite has high HAM costs and in reality, in hunting you essentially face one damage type: Kinetic. Ubese armor is a good choice for a hunter, as is good Chitin armor. Composite is not the answer for the pistoleer who relishes in the hunt - it's more detracting than it is useful. Some mobs do not use kinetic damage, however, as many NPCs will use Energy damage. This creates a Dillemma, as the only armor with a specified special protection against Energy is the abyssmal bone armor. If hunting NPCs, you may want to consider picking up a set of Composite armor - or do not wear any at all.
I've got my armor, and a good idea as to what I want to do. What pistols should I buy?: There is no clear answer to this question, but I will list you a good choice of weapons as to what weapons I'd reccomend as a pistoleer.
Scout Blaster: Energy Damage, the fastest crafted pistol out there today with very low HAM cost.
FWG5:Heat Damage, arguably one of the most efficient pistols. High max damage, and the featherweight versions give nice modifiers.
DX2: Acid Damage, a slower pistol compared to some but has very nice min and max damage with a very favorable type of damage.
Geonosian Sonic Blaster: Stun Damage, high min/max damage at a rather low speed and short range; the most favorable damage type there is.
PISTOLEER AND ITS' ROLE IN THE GALACTIC CIVIL WAR
What role to I have in it as a pistoleer?: The pistoleer is one of the single most important professions in the Galactic Civil war. Being the single most prominently used weapon of the time period, the pistoleer weilds his or her pistol with unwavering talent and prowess. It's people like these that are needed on both sides if any progress is to be made in this war. The pistoleer is often seen as an elite strike combatant, not relying on front-line combat so much as they are used in the comandeering of ships and the defending of them, closed-quarters combat inside buildings, and guerilla warfare fought in the streets. Relying on speed and finesse, the pistoleer is commonly sought after and a vital profession to the continuation of the war.
What does it mean for those of us in the Rebel Alliance?: The Rebel Alliance's primary agents in the galactic civil war are pistoleers. Since the Rebels must rely on stealth and cunning versus using massive numbers, the pistoleer's dexterity makes this absolutely vital for the Rebellion. When comandeered by Imperial Storm Troopers, Rebel commanders will often disperse their pistoleers across their ships in such away that will give them the first shot. Being quick and accurate, Rebel Forces often take these Stormtroopers at an amazing rate thanks to their pistol-packing elite. General Solo of the Rebellion was known for his impeccable skills with a pistol, which ultimately helped the Rebellion win the battle of Endor.
What does it mean for us in the Galactic Empire?: The Empire's forces are many things, and the best to describe them are large and intimidating. The Imperial Stormtroopers tend to be more apt with heavier weapons - most commonly the carbine or rifle - so much training is spent for the Imperial Officers on how to effectively weild a pistol. Extensive training at the revered Imperial academy will allow these armor-less officer's to quite effectively defend themselves if they come under attack. These offers, although they may seem weak and inept at direct combat, are a force to be reckoned with, especially if they come in numbers.
When being a pistoleer, the single best piece of advice that I can give you based on my experience is to HAVE FUN.
Any questions? Comments? Please feel free to reply to this post. I hope this post was helpful to you folks. This post will be frequently updated by me.
Message Edited by ZevMandara on 05-07-2004 07:50 AM
Zandergeef
Wed May 05, 2004 3:35 am
#2
Very nice!! A lot of good info there..that only leaves comando and you couldmaybe throw in the medical things likecombat medics.
_Paclya_
Wed May 05, 2004 4:00 am
#3
few important details are outdated (like the panic shot and the dodge cap at 125).
Message Edited by _Paclya_ on 05-05-2004 01:00 PM
ZevMandara
Wed May 05, 2004 4:07 am
#4
I meant to put 100, so the edit is reflecting that. I know panic shot was nerfed but the information I posted can still be used relevantly if the other party attacks.
Byor
Wed May 05, 2004 7:31 am
#6
The guide its amazing, but you forget one thing.
With the last uberarmors, the damage mititagions and the cheff food, now a pistoleer it's usseles in pvp. Its imposible to incap someone if they're poisonning/diseasing your mind and hitting your mind too.
I am a MasterPistoleer/BHPistols IV, and i have several problems for do something in pvp. The pistoleer's DPS, reducted by armors and mitigations, its totally insuficient to get into pvp...
SilentJay1284
Wed May 05, 2004 8:07 am
#8
You forgot the Triple Master or even the Pistoleer/Rogue/TKA template.
ZevMandara
Wed May 05, 2004 8:08 am
#9
I haven't done the triple masteries yet, or that - I'll add em in though. Lol, I'm constantly updating this thing.
BeWary
Wed May 05, 2004 8:15 am
#10
Lairs have some resist vs blast, no commando in his right mind is using a launcher( a really sub-par pistol as far as pistols go) and fanshot on lairs. You may be thinking of Disarming shot on turrets with the launcher.
ZevMandara
Wed May 05, 2004 8:17 am
#11
I mastered commando doing fan shot on the lair of quenkers in the method I posted. I did it quickly too.
My launcher was 2.5spd 76/276 damage.
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