Fantasy Armor, where style murders functionality

Armor in RPGs is usually the defining part of any characters design. It defines many aspects of a character, be it a potential for strength or speed, limits to mobility or reach, or the ability to complement a fighting style. No one expects a hulking giant of a warrior clad in steel plates from head-to-toe to start tumbling into melee with a rapier, parrying and lunging.

For the longest time, the only set of armor I had for Sarutobi was the 1.5k Templar armor (pictured left, undyed, full set costing 7.5k+materials), dyed silver. I crafted it so long ago that when I got it, it was still called "Knight's Armor", and the silver was closer to white than it is now.

I loved this armor so much for two reasons. Firstly, it was functional. It protects nearly everything I'd want it too, rather than leaving my mid-drift, cleavage, thighs, etc exposed to attack (ok, this leaves the tatas a bit exposed, but not nearly as much as most).

The second reason I liked it was because it was symmetrical. Not a huge deal really, but sometimes it really bothers me how they have their armor sets designed. The art department that worked on Guild Wars deserves plenty of kudos for creating a beautiful game, but seriously, why can't I get armor with two pauldrons? Is it really too much to ask for equal protection of both shoulders?

I crafted this set so long ago, at the time, no elite version of the "Knight's" armor existed. Because of that, I never felt like my character was lacking or inferior, because I was perfectly happy with what I had. However, after I spent a few weeks farming FoW and selling Obsidian Shards on the player market, I noticed that I was getting lowballed by most people who were buying shards. Generally, market price is gauged off what NPCs offer. If the NPC Rare Materials Merchant is selling shards for 3.5k, but buying at 2.5k, the market settles at 3k flat, thus letting the seller turn a profit, and the buyer saves cash in the process.

However, when trying to sell shards, people would lower their offers too me after a face to face meet. Over time, I concluded that since I was wearing cheap armor, people assumed I was poor, so they could still make a buy off me since I'd be too broke to turn them down. After a while, I got fed up and "upgraded".


While it wasn't available for some time, the elite version of "Knight's" armor (now called Templar) came out about two years after launch. Elite Templar, like almost every other set of armor with 'elite' attached to it's name costs 15k per piece. So, I dropped 75k+materials on the new set of armor, which functioned identically to my old set. Not content with that, I went and dyed it black (Black dye is the most expensive, costing 6k-8k, depending). So, that was another 35k or so. And, like I expected, I stopped getting lowballed by every buyer I met. I don't know if it was worth the 100k+ I spent, but at least I don't get 'lolmad' at them anymore.

But now Sarutobi's boobs are exposed. Same with her thighs. And, wait, now she only has one pauldron.

DAMN YOU ARENA.NET! WHY DOST THOU HATE ME SO?!

Sure, my elbows are covered now, cool beans. But now I can't even walk through a bush without getting scratched up. How is that considered effective armor? All I'm doing is encouraging my foes to target my weak spots.

And where is it written that exposing cleavage makes armor more effective in a melee situation? If anything, it ensures that not only will I die faster, but my corpse is liable to be violated. Joy. The worst part is that other than that, the armor is actually really neat. The detail is great, I like the texturing, and it keeps the style of the 1.5k version while being something relatively original unto itself (I really like the gauntlets and the greaves, I felt those were the weaker aspects of the 1.5k version. The helmet is weaksauce though).

However, as you can see from my post about farming FoW, I found an elite set of armor that suits me fine for the most part, Elite Kurzick armor. It makes Saru look a little thinner than I'd like, but more than makes up for that by being the medieval gothic version of Storm Trooper armor. Currently I have it dyed silver, and I'm toying with changing that too white (silver has a distinct blue-ish hue to it, despite making the surface shiny).

I'm considering getting a new set of armor. I'm seriously considering Ancient Armor, and I always talk about getting Obsidian Armor, but I don't know how serious I am about that. Obsidian Armor just seems like such a headache to craft, and I don't like dealing with the FoW PUGs that seem to abound in lieu of actual teams.

I'm open to suggestions.

Sarutobi, in the flesh

I've spoken about her before, but now you can see her, Sarutobi Sasuke, my warrior.

She's wearing her Elite Kurzick armor in this picture, armed with a Mursaat Hammer (I have three, Ebon, Sundering, and Vampiric). I guess it would have better to take a picture with the helmet off, so you could see what she looks like, not her armor.

The Elite Kurzick is outfitted with Sentinel's Insignia (+20 AL vs Elemental), and she has Elite Templar armor with Knight's Insignia attached (-3 physical dmg). I have a set of Elite Platemail that also has Sentinel's on it, and I'm debating what to do with it (salvage, refit, etc).

My current goal is to find a build for solo farming Underworld that I'm comfortable with, so I can start farming Smite Crawlers for Ecto. I already have a bitching build I use to farm Armored Cave Spiders in Fissure of Woe for Shards, but it's not suited for UW. But, with recent buffs to Hundred Blades, I think I'll be able to head there pretty soon and start farming up a good number of Ectos (I need 120 Ectos and 120 Shards to make a full set of Obsidian Armor, while a good run in FoW for me only yields 5 shards, meaning I'll need at least 24 runs to be halfway there.)

This single target version of my FoW build can run the beach and cave in under 30 minutes (which is fast), and can survive agro from Skales, while out-healing their degen (which is great). I currently use this same build, with Body Blow traded for Whirlwind Attack. I prefer Swords to Axes; I know that I could get better AoE is I used an Axe and switched out Counter-Attack for Cyclone Axe, but it's my opinion that having superior single target damage lets me cycle through targets faster, and makes the run go quicker. Either way, here's the rundown of the build:

• Strength 12+1+3
• Swordsmanship 12+1

• Max Zealous Sword (+def mods are kinda pointless, go with +hp)
• Max Shield (-2 in stance is pointless for this build)
• Max Armor with Knight's Insignia & Superior Rune of Absorption

1. Power Attack
2. Counterattack
3. Whirlwind Attack
4. Flail
5. Enraging Charge
6. Defy Pain (E)
7. Lion's Comfort
8. "For Great Justice!"

Otherwise, it functions like any other version of a warrior beach build, but it takes no damage from spiders, meaning the only threat they pose is via degen. Since you'll have over 800 HP near constant, losing 8 hp a second is trivial, especially when you'll heal for 114 about every 10 seconds (Meaning you still post a HP gain of 34 points). Since it takes so little damage, there is little need to pull spiders, you can just dive right in, and start killing. Even if you pull Skale agro, you can live through it, as long as you're actively engaged (Skales can still damage you, and they cause a 20 hp a second drain).

As far as variants, the only skills you have to have are Flail, Enraging Charge, Defy Pain, and Lion's Comfort, and even then, it's really Defy Pain and Lion's Comfort that do all the work. I'm sure more effective variants can be created, but most other builds hinge on using Dolyak Signet, while spamming every Axe AoE they can find (not my style).

Take for example, this build, claiming to be the fastest solo beach run build on PvXWiki. You can see that my build and this one are very different in their approach. Even with the +38 AL granted by Dolyak Signet in this build (giving it 154 AL vs Physical), the -2 stance shield, Knight's Insignia, and a Sup Rune of Absorption, it still takes damage from the spiders (that's -8 physical damage), while mine doesn't (my build possesses -17 physical without the shield, while Defy Pain also gives me +20 AL, for 136 AL vs Physical). Also, notice how it's only direct healing option, Patient Spirit, can and will get interrupted. Lion's Comfort won't, as they don't attempt to do so. Lion's Comfort by itself provides enough healing to cover you, making it you sole source of healing, while the PvX build needs two sources.

It's glaring strength over my build, however, is it's three AoEs to my one. However, as proved by my screenshot, I can still complete the run under 30 minutes, so it's apparently not that much of an advantage. I've posted faster times, but have yet to upload them to photobucket.

The hardest part of farming FoW is learning how to get to the beach. The actual combat is ludicrously easy, given the nature of the instance, but getting there can prove fatal if done poorly. Luckily, many videos exist documenting the safest route to get there, in the least amount of time possible.

Obsidian Shards sell for anywhere from 2.8k to 3.5k, depending on the market. Rubies and Sapphires drop with relative frequency (4.5k to 5k), as do Obsidian Keys and Scrolls of Passage. Standard drops (salvage items, collector's items, white/blue weapons) will earn you a consistent 2k to 2.5k. Less the cost on entry (1k to enter FoW or UW), you'll earn on average 9.4k to 12k, but more than likely, you'll pull more than just 3 shards, and more than just standard drops, earning you anyway from 15k to 27k. Not bad, but not amazing. The real value, to me at least, if not having to pay for shards (If you bought the shards needed for Obsidian Armor, it'd cost anywhere from 336k to 420K).