BBB - Bow Bear Berserker

[Vivi]

Bow bears/dex bears were always a topic of heated debates so I decided to show mine and share some tips and ideas with all of you. All CONSTRUCTIVE FEEDBACK is more than welcome.

INTRO

http://img19.imageshack.us/img19/8453/img1317.png (http://imageshack.us/photo/my-images/19/img1317.png/)
That's how ur stats will look end game. Armor crit ring, mage buff, no self.
http://img194.imageshack.us/img194/8072/img1318.png (http://imageshack.us/photo/my-images/194/img1318.png/)
Same Set up with added full self buff and revive's 1 min buff.
http://img815.imageshack.us/img815/9963/almost56dmgsetup10dmg2c.png (http://imageshack.us/photo/my-images/815/almost56dmgsetup10dmg2c.png/)
10 dmg 2 crit ring, no mage buffs, right before I hit 56

My "build" focuses on being as useful to the party as possible, thus control the mob/boss and punch as much damage as possible.

BUILD

Many ppl spread rumors that STR increases damage of bear's skills dramatically more than DEX. It isn't true, for a fact I did a test using raid roach recurve and compared the damage displayed on stomp with dual spec and full dex - the difference was BADOOM BOOM!! 3 DAMAGE!! The only advantage u get by investing in STR while using DEX gear is noticeable health boost, along with slight h/s, dodge, armor bonus. All boiling down to the question: Do u want to be the one punching or the one being punched. I prefer the prior if u do too read on.

STATS

DEX DEX DEX DEX!
More dex means: more damage, armor penetration, and u still retain the high skill damage u'd get with massive STR.

SKILLS

My end game build looks like this: 6 RAGE, 6 STOMP, 6 BECKON, 6 HELL SCREAM, 6 TAUNT, 6 IRON BLOOD, 5 EVADE, 6 CRUSHING BLOW, 6 SUPER MEGA SLASH, 1 VENGEFUL SLASH, 1 CRIPPLING SLASH, 0 RESTORE

Rage is the single best damaging self buff in the game. Works amazing with fast DEX weapons.
Stomp ur first aoe attack with good damage, decent range and cooldown. Used shortly after Beckon triggers the Smash! aoe combo for added damage, massive knock-back and guaranteed stun effect.
Beckon aka pull; it deals damage (somewhat in the range of ur normal attack damage), draws whole mobs of monsters towards you and has a chance of stunning them. Its vast 12m radius is worth noting.
Hellscream when maxed is my favorite debuff of all. It decreases the damage and hit% by factor of -30, increasing ur survivability if use properly (to maximize it's effectiveness, u must be within a group of monsters!)
Iron Blood and Evade are ur two basic purely defensive self buffs. Pop them when ever u're approaching a larger mob.
Taunt aggroes monsters within vast radius of 12m.When maxed, it provides 12 sec stacking buff giving 8 dodge each, adding up to 16 dodge that can be maintained permanently for NO MANA AT ALL if u hit it as soon as it cools down. This can be used in two ways: when mobs are around to keep the heat of off ur team mates, or selfishly to boost ur dodge when no monsters are around.
Crushing Blow always comes first out of all 4 single target offensive skills in your arsenal for obvious reasons: reduces dodge and damage, making it perfect skill to cast on a boss right after Smash! combo and follow it up with ur 3 slashes. Presumed hidden armor debuff
Super Mega Slash aka SMS. Quick reuse, best damage of all 3 slashes, has a chance to stun. Presumed hidden armor debuff.
Vengful Slash Knock back, another skill to spam for bonus damage.
Crippling Slash Supposed to root target, never confirmed the effect myself but it's always nice to have another ST (single target) skill to spam on a boss fight.
Restore Small heal, temporary h/s regen bonus and I heard it removes debuffs, making it nice investment of one point if u pvp.

For new players I recommend maxing RAGE asap then STOMP and BECKON as soon as it becomes available (save up some skill points!!)
http://img51.imageshack.us/img51/6024/skillmap.png (http://imageshack.us/photo/my-images/51/skillmap.png/)

TACTICS

As I already mention ur primary goal is to crowd control (group monsters in an orderly fashion) and punch massive damage as you do it.

MOB CLEARING

There is one golden rule that will keep u from getting booted: DONT TOSS MOBS ALL OVER THE PLACE!
Basically cast Beckon near objects such as rocks, walls corners and move away from it as the monsters are being pulled. As soon as they move right past u Stomp em into the object. This way they wont be spread all over the place. Dont forget to pop ur Rage on, and Iron Blood/Evade (those two are a must for bigger groups!) If the mob has tendency to survive the combo and ur team's onslaught, use Hell Scream to buy u some extra time while Beckon and Stomp cool down.

BOSS FIGHT

The tactic that I use on bosses is fairly simple and has never failed me. Here go the pictures demonstrating it and promptly explaining the basics. (I didnt mention that u have to spam Taunt all the time and Iron Blood/Evade as needed cuz I assume it's obvious)

http://img840.imageshack.us/img840/5093/tacticpart1.png (http://imageshack.us/photo/my-images/840/tacticpart1.png/)
This way u keep tossing the boss over relatively small area minimizing the interruption to ur party's damage and maximizing the control over the boss (added damage comes as a bonus!)
http://img651.imageshack.us/img651/5027/tacticpart2.png (http://imageshack.us/photo/my-images/651/tacticpart2.png/)
Following up with barrage of slashes as soon as u nail the boss into the side of the corner makes ur damaging capabilities come very close to those of a bird with same equipment.

EQUIPMENT

Until I reached level 50 I didn't really bother with expensive stuff. I just supplied myself with anything that had decent armor and damage for my level and didn't cost an arm and a leg. However once I hit 50 I knew I had to invest some money in a good set. There are many options, I won't elaborate too much. Just give u and show few examples.

Void Bow, Void Gun, Sentinel Gun, Sentinel Talon, Mystery Bow, Cyber Gun, Cyber Talon are all nice sets. Here are some pics (I might add more over time) also u can refer to http://www.spacetimestudios.com/showthread.php?8939-Pinks-with-Stats-and-Pictures-Alien-Oasis-Part-III and http://www.spacetimestudios.com/showthread.php?18619-Pinks-with-Stats-and-Pictures-Balefort-Sewers-amp-Crafting

http://img651.imageshack.us/img651/7213/mysterybowwith10dmg2cri.png (http://imageshack.us/photo/my-images/651/mysterybowwith10dmg2cri.png/)
Mystery bow set has nice dmage, dps, focus lvl5 proc (chance to get lvl5 bird's skill focus adding 25 crit and hit), insane h/s, but lacks in armor, crit and dodge. Screen taken on all self buffs, with vanity helm addint 1 armor, and ring adding 10 damage/2crit. With the focus proc u'd get 25 more crit and hit!
http://img21.imageshack.us/img21/9415/sentibuffedarmor8dodge2.png (http://imageshack.us/photo/my-images/21/sentibuffedarmor8dodge2.png/)
Most defensive talon set with decent damage, crit, dodge, h/s, m/s. The only drawback is the price. Screen taken on all selfbuffs with 8 armor/2 dodge ring.

http://img815.imageshack.us/img815/4553/img1313.png (http://imageshack.us/photo/my-images/815/img1313.png/)
Customized Recurve Set. I think the stats speak for themselves. Pure offense. Full self buff, 10 dmg/2crit ring, vanity helm 1 armor. It's worth to note that I usually go with 8 armor 2 crit ring for mob clearing and 10 dmg 2 crit for bosses.




Version 1.0
Future Updates may include typo fixing, credits, more screens/screen resolution fix and PVP section (after I explore that side of the game as I just hit 56 on my BBB and I'm looking forward to new experiences xD)

[Biuzi]

Great Guide Am thinking of making my dual spec bear a “BBB”, they look really good, but can I add you in game and we can talk about builds etc.
My name is iKingz

[Register]

very nice job!!
I might create a dex bear for end game

[Nightarcher]

Yep, the main thing here is you recommend a full Dex hybrid as opposed to a half-and-half. And because the only reason you would pump Str into a Bowbear is to get skill damage and Dex does that too, I would say either works.

[Sky../]

"Many ppl spread rumors that STR increases damage of bear's skills dramatically more than DEX. It isn't true, for a fact I did a test using raid roach recurve and compared the damage displayed on stomp with dual spec and full dex - the difference was BADOOM BOOM!! 3 DAMAGE!! The only advantage u get by investing in STR while using DEX gear is noticeable health boost, along with slight h/s, dodge, armor bonus. All boiling down to the question: Do u want to be the one punching or the one being punched. I prefer the prior if u do too read on."

What advantage do you get as full dex instead?

[Arterra]

Many ppl spread rumors that STR increases damage of bear's skills dramatically more than DEX. It isn't true, for a fact I did a test using raid roach recurve and compared the damage displayed on stomp with dual spec and full dex - the difference was BADOOM BOOM!! 3 DAMAGE!! The only advantage u get by investing in STR while using DEX gear is noticeable health boost, along with slight h/s, dodge, armor bonus. All boiling down to the question: Do u want to be the one punching or the one being punched. I prefer the prior if u do too read on.

i would go half str for the ability to tank at king and queen if we have a pretty bad party, or no mages that heal right. worked as a pally, works with a bear.

apart from that, love it. tactics are sound, nice screenshots.

[Silentarrow]

Great guide, but I'm still going to stick with my duel spec.

[Nightarcher]

What advantage do you get as full dex instead?

Slightly higher damage, crit, hit%. I would say with a Dexbear, for the purposes of being a dexbear it doesn't matter if you go pure Dex or Dual.

[Vivi]

BBB is more about the play style not whether u're full dex or dual spec. Full dex gives u more weapon damage, dual spec gives u ability to use str equips and higher health pool. Atm I'm exping my bird to 56 so he's using my custom set so I respected my BBB to dual spec and I do the tanking when no good bears are around. (It happens more than often, I had a party of 4 bears+my bird and I had to take the point cuz they were too scared/reluctant to do it... yes it is very sad... Got booted when I suggested a bowbear to start using slashes and crushing boss).

Anyway See ya in sewers xD

[CrimsonTider]

Slightly higher damage, crit, hit%. I would say with a Dexbear, for the purposes of being a dexbear it doesn't matter if you go pure Dex or Dual.

This. The difference is not as noticeable as one thinks. And skill damage is greater woth more strength points, but more efficient with more dex. Good guide tho.

[Vivi]

Full dex vs dual spec: 3 dmg more on stomp with dual spec. Imho that's not even worth calling "more damage" when it's a difference of less than 1% but that's just an opinion xD and Thanks guys, I put a lot of thought into this one, worst part was organizing all the stuff I wanted to say and not make it too lenghty/boring.

[WhoIsThis]

From Mr. Wallace:

http://farm6.static.flickr.com/5181/5648371965_7e870a725a_b.jpg

The impacts on strength vs dex on skill damage are minimal.

[Vivi]

Perfect example to visualize and prove what I said, I'll add it to my guide and credit Mr. Wallace. Where are u from exactly WhoIsThis? I'm from Ontario myself, Mississauga to be specific.

[WhoIsThis]

Perfect example to visualize and prove what I said, I'll add it to my guide and credit Mr. Wallace. Where are u from exactly WhoIsThis? I'm from Ontario myself, Mississauga to be specific.

I'm from the Ottawa area, but I'm studying at the University of Waterloo.

[Ellyidol]

So after seeing Wallace's comparisons, the only real gain from a BBB is :

21% Hit (130-151).

17 Min-Max Damage.

Roughly 4-6 minimum skill damage.

Correct?

[WhoIsThis]

Looks like it.

It's actually on average, just 1-2 skill damage. Note that on the dual spec configurations, the maximum skill damage is actually a bit higher.

In return, you lose:

- 2 dodge and 3 armor
- 67 hp
- 1 H/S
- The ability to wear strength equipment, which depending on the situation, can really improve your survivability and party effectiveness (sometimes drainers just isn't enough)

Other thoughts:
- You lose a very little amount of crit (dex only adds a bit more crit), which rounding probably prevents from showing. In total you lose 0.134% crit. Negligible.



This begs the question - is this worth it? I'd have to say that the dual spec is the better option.

[CrimsonTider]

Looks like it.

It's actually on average, just 1-2 skill damage. Note that on the dual spec configurations, the maximum skill damage is actually a bit higher.

In return, you lose:

- 2 dodge and 3 armor
- 67 hp
- 1 H/S
- The ability to wear strength equipment, which depending on the situation, can really improve your survivability and party effectiveness (sometimes drainers just isn't enough)

Other thoughts:
- You don't lose any crit (dex only adds a bit more crit)



This begs the question - is this worth it? I'd have to say that the dual spec is the better option.

I have literally gone back and forth for months now. IMO, because of the minimal changes in skill damge, hit%, and increased opportunity at survivability, dual spec is the better option. And as mentioned, the opportunity to wear strength gear is always a plus.

Still say this is a good guide and appreciate the work put into it.

[Ellyidol]

I have literally gone back and forth for months now. IMO, because of the minimal changes in skill damge, hit%, and increased opportunity at survivability, dual spec is the better option. And as mentioned, the opportunity to where strength gear is always a plus.

Still say this is a good guide and appreciate the work put into it.

Same, was going back and forth awhile back :)

And agreed, kudos to the guide! :)

[Vivi]

I always used to use Senti talon set for tanking and it was more than enough (good tank with the advantage of range attack), but it all boils down to personal preferences and playstyle. Anyway my bear is dual spec'ed now cuz I reactivated my bird, and it's realy cheap to put an amazing str gear mix on a bear if I need to switch quickly and help my team when tank's needed (one sword and shield mix has almost identical skill damage as I had with custom recurve with 50 armor more, 20 less crit and like 20 more dodge, so all in all it's not that bad)

Thx for all the positive feed back.

[Vivi]

Elly... Dont look at the small things focus at the bigger picture. Skill build, tactics, party task. Dual spec kinda defiles the whole idea behind bow - the range. The moment u use str gear u're just a tank, and my idea was to retain ur range and offensive capabilities even when u use the defensive setup (like senti talon set for tanking - good damage and defenses without losing ur range factor dramatically). STR gear kinda pins u down in one place while with ranged gear u can kite to prevent many of those hits from landing which combined with bear skills is basically ninja-like-state. Given a choice I always go for range. Unless bear gets Biotic charge from Mass Effect 2.

[Sky../]

Hmm the way i see it, you're the one looking at the small picture. Pure dex is a lot limited compared to dualspec.

I'm on mobile so can't post Long so i'll just bring up some points.

-you can still use your talom set up with dual

-the 67 hp increase actually benefits a talon tank more than a reular tank because talon sets have lower def.

-anything you can wear/do as pure dex you can also do in dual. But not everything a dual can do, you can do. Ao with that i'd say dual is the bigger picture.


Elly... Dont look at the small things focus at the bigger picture. Skill build, tactics, party task. Dual spec kinda defiles the whole idea behind bow - the range. The moment u use str gear u're just a tank, and my idea was to retain ur range and offensive capabilities even when u use the defensive setup (like senti talon set for tanking - good damage and defenses without losing ur range factor dramatically). STR gear kinda pins u down in one place while with ranged gear u can kite to prevent many of those hits from landing which combined with bear skills is basically ninja-like-state. Given a choice I always go for range. Unless bear gets Biotic charge from Mass Effect 2.

[Vivi]

You dont need massive armor on regular mobs of monsters, 130 armor on senti talon is enough for sewers to make monsters hit you for their "minimum damage." Talons have already low damage -17 damage can often mean like 20% effective damage reduction. Is it worth for the 10% health pool bonus? As I like pure dex cuz I kite a lot - elusive ninja style. I tried different spec, equip combinations and dual spec with talon set kinda suck, imho the only reason of going dual spec is for the str sets, otherwise it's just a waste of damage.

[tgulledge4]

Keep the updates coming.

Late,
fncrazy

[Caninusi]

Nice guide. :D I have my skills set up the same way xept with evade as 6 and iron blood as 5. This is better IMO because i like dodge over armor and evade
lasts longer than iron blood along with a shorter cool down.

[Vivi]

It is a pretty good and versatile skill setup. Also I have to agree that good dodge>armor - it is better not to take damage at all than take less damage... Yet some ppl still use fortified set... even though it's massive armor is useful only on boss or in pvp (and in pvp I'd still prefer a good armor mix with good damage, crit, dodge, armor, h/s, hit and some m/s, not just pure armor and h/s)

[Ellyidol]

It is a pretty good and versatile skill setup. Also I have to agree that good dodge>armor - it is better not to take damage at all than take less damage... Yet some ppl still use fortified set... even though it's massive armor is useful only on boss or in pvp (and in pvp I'd still prefer a good armor mix with good damage, crit, dodge, armor, h/s, hit and some m/s, not just pure armor and h/s)

It's true, dodge is much better than armour since you don't take any damage at all. IF it works though, that's the main reason for people who prefer high armour, IMO.

Fortified works well, I use one, since armour is always consistent, it doesn't need to rely on luck to reduce damage. It also has a really good damage boost to it :)

[Tamino]

Fortified works well, I use one, since armour is always consistent, it doesn't need to rely on luck to reduce damage. It also has a really good damage boost to it :)
This is the main reason for preferring dual spec to pure dex; not only the slight advantage in health and dodge by stat, but also the BIG advantage in dodge and armor given by STR sets. I use a less expensive Royal Sewer / Fury sword / Bellow's shield set for tanking and I have 37 dodge unbuffed. But most of time I run around with my RR talon/wing set (working on my Custom Recurve...)

[Vivi]

bump xD

[Vivi]

just showing how my bear looks like now xD

http://i1140.photobucket.com/albums/n571/vivimorda/b7d321b8f67e0f1bd1fc6bb2a3e34cb4.jpg

http://i1140.photobucket.com/albums/n571/vivimorda/927f409c2852a3a88bf214186a3a2bed.jpg

http://i1140.photobucket.com/albums/n571/vivimorda/deb35502f1f67820bb6c1442a29c481e.jpg

[Rot]

just showing how my bear looks like now xD

http://i1140.photobucket.com/albums/n571/vivimorda/b7d321b8f67e0f1bd1fc6bb2a3e34cb4.jpg

http://i1140.photobucket.com/albums/n571/vivimorda/927f409c2852a3a88bf214186a3a2bed.jpg

http://i1140.photobucket.com/albums/n571/vivimorda/deb35502f1f67820bb6c1442a29c481e.jpg

Thought you were saying how pure Dex bears are good, then you turned out to be a dual-spec bear...

[Vivi]

This topic was made a year ago (took a break), bow bears still rule but the point of this topic was mostly to explain basic skills, tactics and show that pure dex is a very viable option. It was the days when 95% of bears were scatter bears and I felt a need to share my insight and build. Cheers

[Rot]

This topic was made a year ago (took a break), bow bears still rule but the point of this topic was mostly to explain basic skills, tactics and show that pure dex is a very viable option. It was the days when 95% of bears were scatter bears and I felt a need to share my insight and build. Cheers

Hmm.. I see, sorry for misunderstanding. Great job though. :)