Starting DRK

[j00manji]

Alright, I posted pretty much the same topic in the Paladin forum. I grow tired of PLD, I decided I would make the switch to the dark side and give DRK a shot. The only real question I have is this: what kind of rings should I use? I have an astral ring, which should give me a nice little MP boost. I was thinking I should get a +2 DEX ring at 14 or so, also, what about earrings? mp or attk? I'm a Galka, FYI. and belts: Friars Rope at 15 or go a different route?
I know at later levels I will need to farm my ass off for a pair of Sniper Rings , or just one depending on wether or not I keep using Astral after 40, and other ACC+ gear. Anything else I should know? Keep G.S. capped, essential magic, magic I can go without, etc.?

[Tartaros]

with all the melee jobs i played. i used same items..

2 beetle earrings+1
2 str+2 rings

i took all my melee jobs to 37 only, so.. thats about all i used...

much STR+ as possible. i'm a taru. i outdamaged every person i PT'd with on my road to 37...

[Kailo]

Well, maybe it's just me, but it has been, in my experience, a waste of time and effort to really focus on exactly what you need at lower lvls of almost any jobs, save +MP for low lvl mages. However, if you're looking for the "standard" DRK set, you generally follow the following guidelines (again, this is my opinion from what I've experienced):

Neck: Fang Necklace(lvl 21) then later Royal Guard's Collar(lvl 55)
Ear: The corrisponding +attack earring for your lvl
Ring: +STR if you're Taru or Mithra, DEX if you're Galka or Elv, and maybe a mix of either if you're Hume (at lower lvls like 14-40), but later, +accuracy is probably your best bet
Back: Really nothing useful at lower lvls. You could leave it empty in fact, but generally +attack and +STR on the mantles
Belt: At lvl 45(I think...might be a different lvl) you get access to a belt that actually helps you enough to warrent getting. The Swordbelt. It gives +attack, but later you'll want to switch it out for the +accuracy of Lifebelt.

Obviously things change as you go further and further up in lvl, but I hope I can at least start you out with some ideas of what you might want to do. As for +mp of a DRK; well, that's fine and all, but DRK has always played more like a melee and less like a mage, so focusing on the magical characteristics of DRK has always been rare, but that doesn't mean you can't do it. If that's the path you want to go with your DRK, then by all means, you go right ahead, Galka may have a little trouble with the magical side of things though, so expect to grab a lot of +INT and especially +MP if you truly do want to be more magic than melee. Also, you might want to check out Awntawn's faq on DRKs. Everybody sends people to it because it's so good, so if I haven't answered your questions, he will XD