Hello all,

So I'm realllly curious to try Vanguard, played a bunch of MMO's, started with EQ1 when Kunark was released. Went through games like SWG, CoH, EQ2, WoW, LOTRO and a bunch of others. Some are great games, enjoyed them alot, but (except for SWG when it launched) never caught my interest as much as EQ1 did. The amount of spells, the tactics used, the travels through norrath, the mobs, the grouping, grinding, soloing, the community, I miss it, but afraid going back will shatter my memories ;).

in EQ1 I played a Wood Elf Druid, which I loved for its versatility(?). Being able to heal, buff, debuff, DPS, port and Sow, and most importantly KITE, made its a FUN class to play, even tho I wasn't wanted in High level groups :P.

Also played a Gnome Magician, best pet class i ever played until today, FUN pet animations and a bunch of items to buff it or others with. Also some sweet DPS, was great fun to play with a druid by my side.

Played a Hunter in WoW, simple in basics, versatile when you know how to play.
Played a Wizard in EQ2, DPS DPS DPS, boring in the long run.
Played ranged attack/pet classes in other games, all nice in their own right.
Tried alot ofother classes but except for a healer I didn't find others fun. Not a Melee kinda guy I guess.

What I'm wondering is, is there any class, or classes in Vanguard that kinda resembles a Druid or Magician from my old EQ1 days?

Will try and read the class forums (the external ones) as much as possible, but any hints, tips and suggestions are very welcome :D.

Trying a bard at the moment, but only level 3, so can't really say anything yet.

(Also, any place that has a nice deal for Vanguard? Retail box is not available around these parts of the world (Holland) and Direct2Drive lists it as $40, without any box or manual)

Thanks for even reading!

well there is a druid in this game, and its alot like the EQ version, but more for casting damage then heals like most other games. also alot of the magy job shave a lot of diverity like shaman (apprently excellent soloers) id say dont right off any job until you play it. check out tentonhammer's VG section, theres alot on classes (guids,spell list,general info) other then that i cant really help yah.

It is a difficult comparison to make, but EQ 1 and Vanguard are similar because the games are more challenging than, say, WoW or LotR or EQ 2.

Leveling is slower, the class system is great, death penalty has some sting, and you level-up.  Both game have a group-oriented nature, and travel is often long and sometimes even dangerous.

If you are looking for the EQ 1 feel, as I am, Vanguard is perhaps the closest you can get.  I really enjoyed EQ 2 but once I was level 28, I got very bored.  I am level 49 in Vanguard, and I overall enjoy the game.

Thanks for the insights :D

Said "screw it" and dished out the full €40 bucks for the retail game, hopefully arrives before the week is over ;)

Still haven't decided on class yet, Liking both druid and bard, but other classes look interesting too lol

vanguard in my personal opinion is the only game to get the bard right :-). If you choose to play one you'll enjoy it trust me!

Originally posted by Phaethon

Hello all,

So I'm realllly curious to try Vanguard, played a bunch of MMO's, started with EQ1 when Kunark was released. Went through games like SWG, CoH, EQ2, WoW, LOTRO and a bunch of others. Some are great games, enjoyed them alot, but (except for SWG when it launched) never caught my interest as much as EQ1 did. The amount of spells, the tactics used, the travels through norrath, the mobs, the grouping, grinding, soloing, the community, I miss it, but afraid going back will shatter my memories ;).

I played pretty much the same list and EQ was my favorite as well.

in EQ1 I played a Wood Elf Druid, which I loved for its versatility(?). Being able to heal, buff, debuff, DPS, port and Sow, and most importantly KITE, made its a FUN class to play, even tho I wasn't wanted in High level groups :P.

Also played a Druid part-time and I definitely felt your pain when it came to raids. Poeple were always willing to ask for a PL though

Also played a Gnome Magician, best pet class i ever played until today, FUN pet animations and a bunch of items to buff it or others with. Also some sweet DPS, was great fun to play with a druid by my side.

Played a Necro for solo play. Though I did buy many of your summoned weapons

Played a Hunter in WoW, simple in basics, versatile when you know how to play.
Played a Wizard in EQ2, DPS DPS DPS, boring in the long run.
Played ranged attack/pet classes in other games, all nice in their own right.
Tried alot ofother classes but except for a healer I didn't find others fun. Not a Melee kinda guy I guess.

Check, check, check. Seems we have similar playstyles.

What I'm wondering is, is there any class, or classes in Vanguard that kinda resembles a Druid or Magician from my old EQ1 days?

The VG Druid is similar to the EQ Druid in some ways, but more designed as a direct damage caster. They get a few heals and DoTs and some buffs, but you will never be invited to group as a healer. They kite very well, although you won't do any quadding in VG.

There really isn't a class in VG like the EQ Mage. I would say the Hayatet Shaman is the closest. A Hayatet Shaman uses more spells than melee skills yet they do far less damage than pure damage casters. Although their pets have the least tanking ability of the 3 Shaman, they do have heals and runes to mitigate some damage. VG Shaman get great buffs/debuffs and are quite similar to EQ Shaman.

Will try and read the class forums (the external ones) as much as possible, but any hints, tips and suggestions are very welcome :D.

Trying a bard at the moment, but only level 3, so can't really say anything yet.

Bard is also a great class and a lot of fun to play. It's easy to tell becuase half the VG population seems to be a Bard. No swarm kiting though

(Also, any place that has a nice deal for Vanguard? Retail box is not available around these parts of the world (Holland) and Direct2Drive lists it as $40, without any box or manual)

Thanks for even reading!

I am not sure how to really put your finger on it but to me VG feels more like EQ1 then any other game.  I think it is the feeling of openness.  I mean there are few real similarities but when I first played eq there was a sense of openness and that the world was this large dangerous place.  To some degree I have that feeling when playing VG...

As to class comparisons I think what has already been said here is pretty good.  I'd say that the necro is maybe a good pet class if you liked a mage.  And if you like DPS/Healing some you might want to look at the bloodmage.  Not an eq druid for sure but does have some similarities.

I would say try Shaman or Bloodmage, like someone else said.  Shaman is as close as you are gonna get to EQ Dru.  The Dru in Vanguard is more like the caster half of Dru from EQ.

There is no Mage class like in EQ.  The only pet/mage class is Necro.  Shaman does have pet too and it can take a pretty good beating.  The deal with Shamans is you choose a Patron/Deity at 15 and that is how you specialize more in if you want to be melee or caster based.  As mentioned though, you want be putting out the amounts of damage a Mage did in EQ. 

Yea, almost forgot.  Dru does have some kind of pet, but I think it is a brainless type pet(more like Enchanter pets, the non-charmed). 

I'm mainly playing a Sha right now.  To me the lower levels they seemed a little lacking in the dmg output, compared to some others.  After you get to about 12 and get another melee attack, it starts getting a little funner(think it is 12). 

And heh, you might want to try a Dru here too.  You might like the more caster oriented version, since you seemed to like caster types.