My First Sky Solo Experience

[Callisto]

So I started testing myself out this weekend by seeing if I'm good enough to solo some hard fights...it was pretty interesting.

My first target was Despot, but the MFer wouldn't pop at all, after 2 hours I went ahead and moved on to Steam Cleaner.

My setup was RDM/NIN, using Marron Glace. 8/8 Enfeebling Merits, 2 Ice/Wind Acc, 3 Convert Timer

Debuff Set

Aquilo's/Wind Staff
Phantom Tathlum
Wise Cap
Enfeebling Torque
Enfeebling Earring
Loqacious Earring
Warlock's Tabard
Duelist's Gloves
Hale Ring
Tamas Ring
Prism Cape
Penitent's Rope
Mahatma Slops
Duelist's Boots

317 Enfeebling Skill, +5 Magic Acc, 104 INT

I ran through about 6 Detectors before he popped. I bound SC, waxed the Detector, and ran back upstairs...and lost aggro, so I had to run back down and reclaim him. After taking 2 tries to actually get him back upstairs, I finally got down to business, using the DoT Kite method. I used Huton: Ichi to lower his Ice resistance before reapplying Bind when I could. The fight went well until about 80%, then I had a RDM disaster moment, Utsusemi/Stoneskin/Refresh/Phalanx all wore at the same time, as did SC's Bind/Gravity. I took a few hits and he regained some HP from the Drain effect, but I recovered and kept going.

I got him back down to a bit under 80%, and he used Spectral Barrier. It wasn't as bad as I expected it to be, since he stopped to cast often I was able to get through it pretty easily. At this point I had another LS vulturing me, which was a bit distracting. I bound him and bailed down the stairs, saw Bind wear in the log but didn't see him coming. Scared that I had lost claim for a second I ran back up the stairs...and face-first into Thundaga III. This put me down to about 200 HP, I got shadows up, bound him again, got downstairs to recover. I put a fresh Stoneskin up...and magic aggro'd a Detector. Game over. The vultures were at least kind enough to R3 me after killing SC.

Lessons learned: I'm going to undo my 1 Thunder Acc and 2 Earth Acc merits and max out Ice Acc, and I'll probably bring tools for Doton: Ichi as well next time, and I'm working on my Auster's Staff still. I think I could pull this off once I get the merits done, it's a pretty fun fight as long as you have the place to yourself.

Side note, I came back with a SAM and a BRD and we trio'd Zipacna and SC later in the weekend.

Lemme know if you guys have tried any of these yet and how it was for you!

[Necropolis]

Re: My First Sky Solo Experience

After reading you guide, and gearing up my alt RDM account a bit, I too have taken to a little soloing.

Personally, I've found that more INT is effecting by bind potency over skill. I'm not having a really hard time landing enfeebles, it's more a matter of making them last. For this, I've found Mahatma's Hpl (however you spell the body piece) to be of more aid to me.

I know that giving up such a boost in raw skill can be risky, but from my own experiments (mind you I'm a taru) I've been resisted only twice out of 87 bind cast. Aquilo's staff in my opinion more than makes up for any lost enfeebling by using Errants over Warlocks.

I'm not sure if it's been found out exactly, but I've found the more INT you cast bind with, the harder it is to break it. I use to always Bio it before binding, then I starting doing it after bind (and bind didn't break). After a while I started to find that I could usually get one Thunder3 off without breaking bind about 50% of the time. Typically now I don't risk the nuke unless bind is about ready to be recasted, or gravity is on.

Also, ninja lot you some w legs >.>;; Makes kiting fights a lot easier.

Just some observations I've made while dicking around in sky. Certainly by no means scientific or official, but perhaps things to look into and experiment with.

[Aeni]

Re: My First Sky Solo Experience

Thanks for your post. It's always fun to read another RDM's account on their soloing experience. Gives me something to look forward to if and when I eventually get my RDM to 75.

[hongman]

Re: My First Sky Solo Experience

In order of difficulty for me, it was:

Despot > Ulli > SC > Olla > Zip > Faust > MG (just kidding >.>)

For me, maybe it makes a difference, but I always go +skill > INT. Although I am lolelf. Food I use Glace also or Melon Pie.

On Zip / Faust, those fuckers can and will resist you, my Bind/Gravity setup is at 324-330 I think.

I dont really have much else to add tbh, its great fun, you will die lots especially to the ones that can pop lvl84-85 (your resist rates will rocket from 83-85).

Timing your battles to the right day for Ice/Wind is helpful, dont do what I always seem to do and go on Firesday :D

Other than than, keep your DoTs up, and Haste. Macro haste gear for Utsu, Bind and Gravity. Use <bt> so you dont have to fanny around trying to target. Always get Utsu up first, then SS, then Phalanx in that order. Obviously not forgetting the basic Pro/Shell (as I have done).

Only use Bind, Grav only when you really need to as Gravity builds resistance a lot faster than Bind (Bind doesnt build resistance at all on some NMs). Know your NM also, i.e you'll notice on pulling Zip, he will immediately use a TP move. He also has TP regen faster as his health drops - this is your cue to keep the distance and resist nuking the last bit of healh.

If you have Crim Fingers or any other Dark Skill + to push your bio up, use it.

Er....I cant think of anything else really.

[Callisto]

Re: My First Sky Solo Experience

Yeah INT will affect Bind potency, I try to go for a good mix of skill+/INT+. I think I was wrong about my total INT, I think 104 as /NIN is when I'm in my nuking set, in my enfeebling set I think I'm actually around 95 without food. As far as the W. Legs, I'm 2nd in line currently but Kirin is being an extremely stingy jerk(I need these so I can try JoFort solo as COR too!). At some point this week I'll be adding one more Ice Accuracy, then grabbing some Doton tools and trying it again.

The leader of my LS keeps arguing w/ me because he wants in on the action LoL, so I have to go up to Sky secretly if I want to solo all of this! Either way it's a fun feeling knowing that not many linkshells can send 2-3 members up to sky and leave with 2-3 trigs.

[hongman]

Re: My First Sky Solo Experience

Yep, left sky once having done Olla Faust and Zip in one session, with just me and another RDM.

Good times, good profit. :D

[Callisto]

Re: My First Sky Solo Experience

The main thing for me is it makes it so that we can do Diorites/Waters/Despot/MG/Faust when we have more people on scheduled Sky nights if I can get 2-3 trigs outside of scheduled times. I hate sending an entire party to do Zip when we could only send 2.

I don't know if I'll ever be able to solo Despot though, becuase THE MFER DOES NOT POP!!!

[Taskmage]

Re: My First Sky Solo Experience

I've been thinking, if you could get a clean pull just after she pops (before she has an entourage) wouldn't MG be pretty doable? The pet globes are, by accounts, weak enough to go down to Blizzard III and the NM itself doesn't seem to have all that much HP or other special tricks.

[Necropolis]

Re: My First Sky Solo Experience

I've been thinking, if you could get a clean pull just after she pops (before she has an entourage) wouldn't MG be pretty doable? The pet globes are, by accounts, weak enough to go down to Blizzard III and the NM itself doesn't seem to have all that much HP or other special tricks.

I could see MG being Duo-able; I've done it with 3 (PLD, RDM, BLM); but she hits likes a damn truck. And you'd need a reliable stun for thundaga 3.

[hongman]

Re: My First Sky Solo Experience

MG can be duoed with slaves by a well geared/merited BLM and RDM, so Iv heared.

Take down the slaves with 1 Blizzaga III while the RDM Bind's MG and go from there.

Sounds risky though, if that 1 Blizzaga didnt 1 shot all the slaves, you're pretty much foobar'ed.

The biggest problem I can think of for RDM solo on a clean MG (no slaves) is that in addition to kiting it, keeping buffs up as well as damage by DoT and/or Nukes, an RDM alone could easily run out of MP too quickly.

MG pops a slave every minute or so, so that's a Blizz 3 you have to chuck at it every min...thats a lot of MP to be throwing away solo, even with AF2 hat and Dalm!

EDIT: I guess if you had enough meds....

[Seijurohiko]

Re: My First Sky Solo Experience

Lowest I've done MG with was 3: RDM/NIN, RDM/NIN, BLM/RDM. As mentioned, she pops a new slave pretty much every 60 seconds, so it takes quite a bit of MP to keep up with killing them. We used a RDM/NIN to solo MG with basic Bind/Gravity/DoT around the teleporter while the other RDM and BLM stood on the teleporter and alternated nuking down slaves as they popped. By the time one ran out of MP, the other had rested to full, so it was easy to keep up like this.

[Callisto]

Re: My First Sky Solo Experience

Lowest I've done MG with was 3: RDM/NIN, RDM/NIN, BLM/RDM. As mentioned, she pops a new slave pretty much every 60 seconds, so it takes quite a bit of MP to keep up with killing them. We used a RDM/NIN to solo MG with basic Bind/Gravity/DoT around the teleporter while the other RDM and BLM stood on the teleporter and alternated nuking down slaves as they popped. By the time one ran out of MP, the other had rested to full, so it was easy to keep up like this.

Out of curiosity, how did you make the pull? The only thing that would worry me is getting waxed by slaves on the way to the teleporter, I'm not sure if my RDM could survive the run back, maybe with powder boots or something?

[Seijurohiko]

Re: My First Sky Solo Experience

Yeah, can't take too many hits from the slaves, so we killed them right as we pulled. The first thing we did was clear the other detectors, taking care not to aggro MG. Once the room was clear enough, we waited for MG to get fairly close to the tele room and had a RDM pull MG with Gravity. Just after pulling, the BLM would toast all the slaves with Thundaga III. They'd get a few hits in, but with Tav. Tacos, -dmg taken and defense gear, as well as 3x shadows, it wasn't too dangerous.

[Callisto]

Re: My First Sky Solo Experience

Finally caught some breaks...beat SC and Zip last night, my first solo wins!

[hongman]

Re: My First Sky Solo Experience

Grats Callisto!