So uhh...

[Atma]

So I picked up the mantle of Beastmaster recently. So far I've made it to 17 without too much difficulty (though the xp has kinda started to crawl in a bit). I was wondering if someone can give me some pointers.

1) I don't quite understand how hate works... How my beetle can wail on another beetle for 15+ seconds and 100+ damage, yet I walk in and swing for 20 and pull hate is very wierd. I generally charm DC and go after EM, or if there are no DC I'

2) What level do my pets become more effective at "tanking" then I? It seems that right now I'm only taking 50% and the pet 50%.. it makes it very difficult to "ghetto leave", as the second I use Heel it pulls hate onto me again.

[Silenus]

Re: So uhh...

All great questions. You are well on your way to bstly goodness.

Your pet has been hit harder than it has hit the mob, so it has very little "residual" hate. That's why any little thing you do can pull hate, and why you can swing once and get smacked. I don't know the exact ratio, but it's not 1:1; i.e., if it hits for 100 and gets hit for 100, the hate is not zero; however, it your pet hits for 100 and has been hit for 500, let's say, it probably has like zero hate.

You can use "Heel" from clear across the zone. If you use it within, say, "Provoke" range, you will get the hate from using an ability. Just back up until they both appear to stop moving, or are off your radar; then using an ability, or healing yourself, etc., will have no effect on the mob and keep you off its hate list.

Pets make great tanks sometime in your 30's, maybe? Let the fight get ripe a little and you can wade in and bash stuff to your heart's delight. I would suggest unlocking the target though and turning your back to the mob if you pull hate to give your pet a chance to get it back. Also, if you are on a PC, you can unlock and hold shift and the arrow keys and look all around you. Situational awareness becomes priority one after a few hard knocks.

A lot of people don't use "ghetto" leave for just those reasons. If you have a good EM pet, you might want to fight 2 or 3 dc's before getting it killed off. Just be careful you're not expecting it to hang around too long, though, and get ready to re-charm it on an instant's notice.

Have fun playing bst! It's a great job and highly enjoyable because you can play it the way YOU want to.

[Omni]

Re: So uhh...

XP will always crawl on your way to 35. some days/areas its not so bad, some times is horrid. just gotta tough it out.

like silenus said, pet hate doesnt really step up till around 30s, imo, even then its not that great either. i havent been completely comfortable with pet hate till late 30s. At that time, it really does work out, but that odd double atk or crit-ws will always take hate back.

with hate on heel, its just something that happens, i usually unlocked target and turned around, heel then stay. after a few whacks, if the mob doesnt go back to hitting your pet, you might as well just finish it off and take the xp cut since dying b/c trying to kill ur pet is a lot worse than taking that -30% xp.

have fun! dont lose hope, you can make it to the promise land! (lv. 35 :p)

[Atma]

Re: So uhh...

XP will always crawl on your way to 35. some days/areas its not so bad, some times is horrid. just gotta tough it out.

like silenus said, pet hate doesnt really step up till around 30s, imo, even then its not that great either. i havent been completely comfortable with pet hate till late 30s. At that time, it really does work out, but that odd double atk or crit-ws will always take hate back.

with hate on heel, its just something that happens, i usually unlocked target and turned around, heel then stay. after a few whacks, if the mob doesnt go back to hitting your pet, you might as well just finish it off and take the xp cut since dying b/c trying to kill ur pet is a lot worse than taking that -30% xp.

have fun! dont lose hope, you can make it to the promise land! (lv. 35 :p)

Thanks for the advice guys. My playtime during the week is rather limited, so in general my plan is going to be to log in, grind out a level or so with the XP Ring of goodness, then log out. Looking forward to hitting up Korroloka, in Carpenter's now and it seems to be a good level mix.

[Xenthan]

Re: So uhh...

Ya, hate is often tricky. Every now and then I'll still fight with my pet and easily get hate, so I'm sure there's some big, complicated formula. But if you constantly get hate from a few hits, I'd suggest downgrading your axe. You don't need to do big damage, just enough to help your pet. As for pet tanking, that's a fuzzy line. I truly started to safely melee around 33-35 (bibiki bay), but it varies depending on your pet, prey, and that kind of thing.

[Ellipses]

Re: So uhh...

What I've heard on Heel range, and what I used while I was leveling BST, is this. Get to where you can still see your pet and target, but can't see their battle animations. In other words, it will look like two sheep staring each other down and not doing anything. If you use it from there, you won't get hate from using abilities or casting spells.

[samarium]

Re: So uhh...

100% on the Heel range. You can also use the monster radar feature that bst has - walk away until the yellow dot signifying your pet and the red dot signifying the monster have just faded off the edge of the disc, and you're now outside hate range.

This knowledge would greatly benefit other jobs too! If you have space, as a WHM if you take a huge hit and have a few seconds (like using a NIN tank), run back out of hate range and Cure yourself. If you can coordinate this with your other mages, you can give the BLM a hand back up without putting your own life in danger.

This obviously can't be done everywhere, but it's something to keep in mind.

-sam

[Deedledee]

Re: So uhh...

Also remember every action you do adds to your hate total. "Fight", "Heel", "Stay" and "Release" can all swing the mobs your way. It's fun to play on and learn the hate lines. ^-^