[Slayer] Guide - How to take lickin' and keep on skippin'

[tionblack]

@ Fallenkezef - Don't worry about it! I'm of the mind that the more discussion about slayers/this guide the better. Sure some are more abrasive than others, but in the end everyone is championing their version of what they see as the best for the slayer class. The more info a new/struggling slayer can see the better off they'll be in the long run. I try to support why I choose the things I do in the guide, but clearly that's not the only way to build/play a slayer.

@Darosh - I get that a "dead slayer does no damage," but, again, if I'm not dying, and keep close to 100% uptime on targets, then any more defensive stats would be overkill. 100 Wounds/100 Initiative is only better if I would have died without them. How I play (relaxed 6m/RvR/pug SCs) very rarely do I feel that kind of consistent pressure. It's not like I've ignored defensive stats while just pumping WS. With the 5% reduction liniment I've got a less than 0% (sit at 3.7% normally) chance to be crit as well as solid parry and middling dodge/disrupt.

I'm SURE thing are different in the competitive 6m world, but this guide isn't aimed at optimizing for that. And I'm very clear about it. I couldn't write a guide for that because, A: I have no experience with competitive 6m, and B: the build/gear should be adjusted, as you alluded to, based on your own 6m composition anyways.

However, before I assume too much in my reply some clarification would be helpful. Curious what your goal is for a slayer. Is your position that a slayer should building 100% defensive and secure kills through pooling AP and good target swaps?

I am sorry but every 6 man is a competetive party.People do not regroup to kill mobs,they do it to be successful in PvP.So this whole guide thingie fails the time you accept you dont have much experience and people read it and gets affected in a negative way i think that is why Darosh took his time to tell whats really going on.If you do not have experience with something you simply should not make a guide.

[tionblack]

This thread had rather pissed me off. A bloke tries to do some good, put a guide up and share his experience and so many have jumped hom and slagged him off.

Sure, some of his ideas I disagree with and some of us, like Shey for instance, have added to the discussion.

The gits who all-out slagged the thread really annoyed me.

[Fallenkezef]

One thing that bears mentioning is thr gear issue.

There are many great builds but most rely on a certain gear/rr level. This, I think, is where allot of class whines and disappointment come from. Folks trying ti achieve results without the gear/rr to back it up.

Something I learned the hard way. Have the patience and fore-thought to shelve that "ideal" build till later and work with sonething more doable.

[sikth]

Excuse my relatively "dumb" question. But is there a difference on slayer between wielding hammers and wielding axes?

[Panzerkasper]

Excuse my relatively "dumb" question. But is there a difference on slayer between wielding hammers and wielding axes?

No, only if there is a difference in the Stats on the weapon ofc.

[katroulitsa]

Spoiler:

(ˈsleɪər) -

It's actually /ˈsleɪə/

[pfs2222]

One thing that bears mentioning is thr gear issue.

There are many great builds but most rely on a certain gear/rr level. This, I think, is where allot of class whines and disappointment come from. Folks trying ti achieve results without the gear/rr to back it up.

Something I learned the hard way. Have the patience and fore-thought to shelve that "ideal" build till later and work with sonething more doable.

Having just started a slayer, the "gear issue" is something where every guide could be helpful with hints on "how to get there". What I am trying to say is, for sure it is good information to know what stuff is BiS, but hints on outfits for different stages of the career would also be phantastic. Volgograd did this for his 2H IB guide and it helped me a lot. The hint "combine sets to get max STR" for example is really great. For example for levels below 30 it could be 2 piece Devastator, 2 piece Mayhem which could be worn at level 27...

[Darosh]

One thing that bears mentioning is thr gear issue.

There are many great builds but most rely on a certain gear/rr level. This, I think, is where allot of class whines and disappointment come from. Folks trying ti achieve results without the gear/rr to back it up.

Something I learned the hard way. Have the patience and fore-thought to shelve that "ideal" build till later and work with sonething more doable.

Having just started a slayer, the "gear issue" is something where every guide could be helpful with hints on "how to get there". What I am trying to say is, for sure it is good information to know what stuff is BiS, but hints on outfits for different stages of the career would also be phantastic. Volgograd did this for his 2H IB guide and it helped me a lot. The hint "combine sets to get max STR" for example is really great. For example for levels below 30 it could be 2 piece Devastator, 2 piece Mayhem which could be worn at level 27...

You'd be better of with Duelist than a STR stack, bolster covers your plain stats so long you are geared within at max. 5lvl of your actual level, additionally you really wanna utilize the avoidance changes ... given even fluff dots are deadly on a sub40.

Pick up impervious asap, you'll run it for a long time (read: attleast until R40) - pair it up with whatever set gives the 300ish spirit resist (anni/merc/ruin), to not implode in the lakes. Stack some wounds to hit 6-7k, to give your healers a gcd/yourself time to pot, account for wounds debuff, timestamping sorcs, resis debuffs, yadayada.
Work a little bit on initiative, too, you'll lack the RR to facilitate futile strikes/avoidance stacks, 100 ini through whatever means are essentially mandatory due to SH conq proc (Monstro Mara, WE kiss, yadayada), any debuff to stock initiative is a death sentence, especially on a sub40/recently dinged midget, you'll invetiably transition into red - even with practice of sensible ragedropping.
CC (disarm/kd, ...) + initative debuff (atleast 50% ctbc with stock initative) + low base armor/resis + class mechanic = dead midget, dead guardbot.
Mind you, once people sniff out ultra-squishs, they keep at it. Try running glassy without dedicated healer/tank whilst up against, say Gloom, or whatever discount ST sorc/SH (with conq proc)...
Use domi boots/anni shoulders for cheap and early -ctbc., min-maxing for glass(y approaches) is something you can attempt with a group, or solo/duo roam with high RR.

If glass works out while you are solo/pugging (and low level/RR/gear), it is because your opposition is sub-garbagetier ~ you got lucky with a dice.

[Fallenkezef]

Best advice I could give is hit SC's/rvr hard at 31 till you get rr to 40/41. You do not want to be rank 40 with rr below 40.

Darosh makes excellent points. I went into 40/41 with a merc glass cannon build. Wasnt long till I respecced a defensive build till I had full genesis and the subjugator hitty stick.

[Elio]

First big update to the guide is 1/2 done. Updated gear/renown/tactics. Second half with tips/rotation/ability overview and some blessed post coloration and formatting will be up later this week. Wanted to sit on the build I posted for about a month and see how I felt after that.

I half spitballed it for the sub-41 gear. It's been a hot minute since I was gearing for that. If there are any specific pieces that help with the progression to 40/41 please let me know!