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Greetings,
I am a new, young, rather inexperienced ranger with a few questions. Any advice will be greatly appriciated, even if it seems blaringly obvious to everyone else. So please, don't be shy. Now on to my questions.
I'm finding it terribly difficult to learn foraging, so either I'm going about it the wrong way or something isn't quite right. At the moment, I've only five ranks in foraging, most of which came from joining the guild and circling. The other rank has been fairly difficult to obtain since I can't seen to go past learning. I've tried foraging once, twice, or three times a room and moving on to the next, but that doesn't seem to get me anywhere. I've tried foraging for anything, for certain items I can find (ie, branch, berries, grass) and for items I haven't found (yelith root on Deer trail in Riverhaven), but nothing seems to bump me up a mindstate. I've read some other posts in this folder recomending foraging wood, but I don't think I'm anywhere close. Am I going about this the wrong way? Is there a difficulty ladder for these beginning ranks? Is random foraging a bad idea? I find rocks, berries, and crumbs often but they don't seem to get me anywhere. It's frustrating.
Second, I read that tracking in Riverhaven doesn't work except for the Deer Trail. As far as I can tell, that's true. Even with just a few ranks in Scouting, I can follow a boar on the Deer Trail, but I can't follow anything else in the city, Salt Yards, or goblin forest. Is this an game mechanical issue, or are there in game reasons? I'm still able to learn Scouting reasonably well even if I can't successfully track, so this is more a question out of curiosity than anythign else.
Finally, any general suggestions for a new Ranger are welcome. I'm sure there's lots of questions on issues I don't even know about. Thanks in advance.
Mind behind Olrin, Tenderfoot
Olrin,
I am sure you will get many more replies from those with more knowledge of Rangerly ways than I. However, since I appear to be the first to see your message, allow me to be the first to respond.
First, welcome to the Realms. It's always nice to see new faces, especially new faces in the Ranger Guild.
Second, as for foraging, keep in mind that as a Ranger, you have some capabilities that other guilds do not. We have the ability to <forage precise> and <forage careful>. "Forage careful" can be a big help to attaining foraging ranks. Recently, our former Ranger GM Jent posted a list of forageables from easiest to hardest (although he did not include in that list the ranks at which you could find each). Using that list, you can easily discover which forageables you can find and which ones are beyond your reach. To help you figure out what you can find, go to www.ashcomics.com/foraging.html#list. My suggestion is to try foraging careful for grass, sticks, berries, and dirt. I use this with higher level items and can usually lock my foraging in less than 15-20 minutes.
Third, I don't know the answer to your scouting question. Quite honestly, I got most of my early scouting ranks listening to teachers and tracking the scarecrow and kitten in Arthe Dale. If you don't know where that is, it's very near The Crossing, which is the most populated area of the Realms. I suggest you go to the Crossroads of Elanthia website and look at their maps of the Realms to get yourself there if you're interested.
Fourth, my general advice fo new Rangers would be this:
a) Study the guild requirements for each circle. They change as you get higher in ranks. Make sure you keep yourself well-rounded, because once you get to 30th, you'll need to have significant ranks in five survival skills to circle.
b) Train as many weapons as you can. Backtraining is a pain in the butt.
c) Don't neglect magic. It's tough to get at lower ranks (first spell comes at 5th), but it can dramatically increase your ability to survive the higher you get.
d) Learn as many skills as you can, even those you don't require as a Ranger. The more ranks you gain in various skills, the more Time Development Points you gain. TDP's are extremely important for raising your stats.
e) Listen to the advice of the guild elders, but ultimately choose your own path. Just because something worked for them doesn't mean it will work for you. If you play your character differently, their ideas may slow your progress.
f) Be polite. There are too many snerts out there already. Don't get labelled a snert right out of the gate.
g) Don't neglect swimming. You only need 40 ranks ever in your life as a guild requirement, but you'll need more if you want to get to certain other areas that are inaccessible to players with low swimming ranks.
h) Figure out who you want your Ranger to be and then work your skills to take advantage of your personality. If you want to be a power-circler, that's fine. However, if you want to be a particular type of Ranger, keep that in mind when you work stats. For instance, I try to play Llyldoryn as a tracker/scout. I have enough scouting to be several circles higher than I am. I continue to work it harder than my other skills, even though I don't need it to circle, because that's who I am.
That's all I can think of for now. I'm sure others will have different advice, some may even be contradictory. It's your job to pick the advice you want to follow and the advice you want to discount.
Again, welcome to the guild. If I see you around, I'll be sure to say "hi."
_______
Llyldoryn
I am sure you will get many more replies from those with more knowledge of Rangerly ways than I. However, since I appear to be the first to see your message, allow me to be the first to respond.
First, welcome to the Realms. It's always nice to see new faces, especially new faces in the Ranger Guild.
Second, as for foraging, keep in mind that as a Ranger, you have some capabilities that other guilds do not. We have the ability to <forage precise> and <forage careful>. "Forage careful" can be a big help to attaining foraging ranks. Recently, our former Ranger GM Jent posted a list of forageables from easiest to hardest (although he did not include in that list the ranks at which you could find each). Using that list, you can easily discover which forageables you can find and which ones are beyond your reach. To help you figure out what you can find, go to www.ashcomics.com/foraging.html#list. My suggestion is to try foraging careful for grass, sticks, berries, and dirt. I use this with higher level items and can usually lock my foraging in less than 15-20 minutes.
Third, I don't know the answer to your scouting question. Quite honestly, I got most of my early scouting ranks listening to teachers and tracking the scarecrow and kitten in Arthe Dale. If you don't know where that is, it's very near The Crossing, which is the most populated area of the Realms. I suggest you go to the Crossroads of Elanthia website and look at their maps of the Realms to get yourself there if you're interested.
Fourth, my general advice fo new Rangers would be this:
a) Study the guild requirements for each circle. They change as you get higher in ranks. Make sure you keep yourself well-rounded, because once you get to 30th, you'll need to have significant ranks in five survival skills to circle.
b) Train as many weapons as you can. Backtraining is a pain in the butt.
c) Don't neglect magic. It's tough to get at lower ranks (first spell comes at 5th), but it can dramatically increase your ability to survive the higher you get.
d) Learn as many skills as you can, even those you don't require as a Ranger. The more ranks you gain in various skills, the more Time Development Points you gain. TDP's are extremely important for raising your stats.
e) Listen to the advice of the guild elders, but ultimately choose your own path. Just because something worked for them doesn't mean it will work for you. If you play your character differently, their ideas may slow your progress.
f) Be polite. There are too many snerts out there already. Don't get labelled a snert right out of the gate.
g) Don't neglect swimming. You only need 40 ranks ever in your life as a guild requirement, but you'll need more if you want to get to certain other areas that are inaccessible to players with low swimming ranks.
h) Figure out who you want your Ranger to be and then work your skills to take advantage of your personality. If you want to be a power-circler, that's fine. However, if you want to be a particular type of Ranger, keep that in mind when you work stats. For instance, I try to play Llyldoryn as a tracker/scout. I have enough scouting to be several circles higher than I am. I continue to work it harder than my other skills, even though I don't need it to circle, because that's who I am.
That's all I can think of for now. I'm sure others will have different advice, some may even be contradictory. It's your job to pick the advice you want to follow and the advice you want to discount.
Again, welcome to the guild. If I see you around, I'll be sure to say "hi."
_______
Llyldoryn
Also, there have been huge changes in foraging itself. So many herbs no longer grow where they used to- which is why you can't find yelith root at the Deer Trail now.
If you read back in the GM announcements, you'll find a list of items that can be foraged in order of difficulty. Keep in mind that the time of day, the weather, the seasons, and the condition of your health will effect what you can find.
Welcome to the guild!
Phayren Dha'Ran, Ranger
Sometimes the key to happiness is not assuming it is locked in the first place- Ziggy
A journey of a thousand SMILES begins with a single step- Ziggy
If you read back in the GM announcements, you'll find a list of items that can be foraged in order of difficulty. Keep in mind that the time of day, the weather, the seasons, and the condition of your health will effect what you can find.
Welcome to the guild!
Phayren Dha'Ran, Ranger
Sometimes the key to happiness is not assuming it is locked in the first place- Ziggy
A journey of a thousand SMILES begins with a single step- Ziggy
Alright!! Welcome to the Ranger guild.
Foraging-first few ranks stink, find a class to help. After that I would follow Llyldoryn's advice.
Scouting-First 35ish ranks are very difficult. Classes help, but the scarecrow is a good idea as well. Riverhaven tracking I have heard is difficult if not impossible because you cannot track for some reason. Arthe Dale is bonus neutral, but if you go track until locked (which can take some time) then go swim or climb in a bonus positive spot, as a youngin it won't kill you.
Swimming-What Llyldoryn said.
Weapons training. While I train a few weapons, there is a benefit to keeping the numbers down. You need at least 3 weapons trained for guild reqs. I currently train: Longbow, ME, LE and MB as my primary weapons. I also train Comp bow and Short bow. I might pick up an HE as well. Weapons are usually the last thing I need outside of hiding to circle.
Train Shield.
Training multiple armor classes is also a nice way to get some extra TDP's and its more passive than weapons. I would get 40ish ranks in Leather before you add a chain accessory just to keep your hinderance down. Also, work your multi opponent skills as much as you can, it helps later.
Training stealth at low ranks can be a pain. Although, up to a certain point you can get exp by just hiding in a room and stalking. One way I trained for a long while was to hide and stalk through the west gate goblins in crossing out to the brook for swimming, I could generally lock up both hiding/stalking, go swim and then lock up hiding/stalking on the way back. I would suspect you can do the same in 'Haven. When you get to a level you dodge boars and such regularly, strip off your armor to help with your hiding/stalking success. I usually use this time to train my bows. Not sure what the new caps are on teaching.
Magic-Simply, find a class, anyone can teach. About an hour in class and you can get all the magic you need to get to 5th, after that, the spell will teach you. Train Power perception, even before 5th.
Holler if you need help. Although you wouldn't know it from the conflict folder, Rangers stick together. My IM is DR Peperic. I won't be on for a few more days but let me know, Pep can come be bait for the boars while you train your hiding/stalking on them, heck even goblins too. I think I left him in 'haven? hmm..
You are Scout Peperic Timarson, an Elf and member of the Ranger Rescue squad, dragging deaders since 374 AV.
Foraging-first few ranks stink, find a class to help. After that I would follow Llyldoryn's advice.
Scouting-First 35ish ranks are very difficult. Classes help, but the scarecrow is a good idea as well. Riverhaven tracking I have heard is difficult if not impossible because you cannot track for some reason. Arthe Dale is bonus neutral, but if you go track until locked (which can take some time) then go swim or climb in a bonus positive spot, as a youngin it won't kill you.
Swimming-What Llyldoryn said.
Weapons training. While I train a few weapons, there is a benefit to keeping the numbers down. You need at least 3 weapons trained for guild reqs. I currently train: Longbow, ME, LE and MB as my primary weapons. I also train Comp bow and Short bow. I might pick up an HE as well. Weapons are usually the last thing I need outside of hiding to circle.
Train Shield.
Training multiple armor classes is also a nice way to get some extra TDP's and its more passive than weapons. I would get 40ish ranks in Leather before you add a chain accessory just to keep your hinderance down. Also, work your multi opponent skills as much as you can, it helps later.
Training stealth at low ranks can be a pain. Although, up to a certain point you can get exp by just hiding in a room and stalking. One way I trained for a long while was to hide and stalk through the west gate goblins in crossing out to the brook for swimming, I could generally lock up both hiding/stalking, go swim and then lock up hiding/stalking on the way back. I would suspect you can do the same in 'Haven. When you get to a level you dodge boars and such regularly, strip off your armor to help with your hiding/stalking success. I usually use this time to train my bows. Not sure what the new caps are on teaching.
Magic-Simply, find a class, anyone can teach. About an hour in class and you can get all the magic you need to get to 5th, after that, the spell will teach you. Train Power perception, even before 5th.
Holler if you need help. Although you wouldn't know it from the conflict folder, Rangers stick together. My IM is DR Peperic. I won't be on for a few more days but let me know, Pep can come be bait for the boars while you train your hiding/stalking on them, heck even goblins too. I think I left him in 'haven? hmm..
You are Scout Peperic Timarson, an Elf and member of the Ranger Rescue squad, dragging deaders since 374 AV.
Welcome to the guild! And just a slight adjustment, we need 60 swimming now, not 40. Just two ranks per circle though, not too bad. Still hate getting my fur wet though...As for foraging, it is a bear. The first reason I think I left the realms was because I was getting tired of foraging endlessly for hours. But as someone else said, forage <careful/precise> really helps.
As for your scouting inquiries...to be honest tracking anything at lower ranks is an utter pain and can be quite difficult. I don't know if it's a mechanics issue so much as a skill issue. I reccomend just keep tracking those boars, or head south to Arthe Dale (which everyone seems to reccomend) and track the scarecrows and stuff. I personally tracked the cute piglet in the Tiger Clan. But whatever you find works, will work.
Also, I hear in Haven there are two new trails that will work your scouting with lower ranks (how low I'm not quite sure, or even where they are). You might want to keep an eye out for those.
I do reccomend perhaps heading down to Crossing if you're fairly new. The Ranger Guild there is fairly populated and it's not difficult at all to find a class or two to aid you along the way.
As for general rangerly tips....scrapping skins is your friend to learn skinning. As for training multiple armor, to me it depends on how you train. If you're someone who likes mobs, I might stay away from training chain until you have the defenses and offenses to compensate for the hinderance (high hinderence = harder retreating). I recently started training it, but only because of the rumors of war. Figure even someone like me who wears leather religeously can put on a suit of chainmail during a war. And yes, yes yes...listen to Pep. Train shield. I hated shield until recently but it's fairly useful.
- Saharia Junishin, Prydaen Ranger
As for your scouting inquiries...to be honest tracking anything at lower ranks is an utter pain and can be quite difficult. I don't know if it's a mechanics issue so much as a skill issue. I reccomend just keep tracking those boars, or head south to Arthe Dale (which everyone seems to reccomend) and track the scarecrows and stuff. I personally tracked the cute piglet in the Tiger Clan. But whatever you find works, will work.
Also, I hear in Haven there are two new trails that will work your scouting with lower ranks (how low I'm not quite sure, or even where they are). You might want to keep an eye out for those.
I do reccomend perhaps heading down to Crossing if you're fairly new. The Ranger Guild there is fairly populated and it's not difficult at all to find a class or two to aid you along the way.
As for general rangerly tips....scrapping skins is your friend to learn skinning. As for training multiple armor, to me it depends on how you train. If you're someone who likes mobs, I might stay away from training chain until you have the defenses and offenses to compensate for the hinderance (high hinderence = harder retreating). I recently started training it, but only because of the rumors of war. Figure even someone like me who wears leather religeously can put on a suit of chainmail during a war. And yes, yes yes...listen to Pep. Train shield. I hated shield until recently but it's fairly useful.
- Saharia Junishin, Prydaen Ranger
Welcome to the Guild, bud. Several others have already given you plenty of good advice, so to avoid overloading you on your first day (so to speak) I'll stick to the questions you asked.
Foraging:
There's a list of the general order of difficulty for the foraging items (Olwydd has a copy at http://www.olwydd.org/herbs/difficulty.php), just start at the bottom and work your way up. The higher you can go on that list and still find it every time, the better you'll learn for the most part. Myself, the order I used to train a new Ranger recently was: rocks to 7 ranks, limbs (no specific type, just limbs) to 30, acorns to 45, 45-60 is missing on my list, red flowers from 60 to 85+. Of course, this was foraging in the back area of the Crossing Ranger Guild. Around Riverhaven the locational difficulties will likely be different.
Remember to maximize yourself for foraging: no wounds, no burden, remove head/hand armor and kneel. It's easier to forage in the daytime during clear weather, night and bad weather add cumulative penalties and the two combined can put a real damper on success.
Tracking:
Just keep tracking things, even when you fail you learn. Stay out of the city ... it hurts your bonus and things are harder to track in an urban area (all that traffic confuses the tracks and the ground is hard to begin with). Your best bet is 4-legged targets in a non-urban area. When you reach 30-35 ranks of scouting, you will be able to use your first trail, located just outside the north and east gates of Riverhaven. For those who were asking before about the new trails released recently, that is one of them, however I have not confirmed it yet myself, was only told about it. At around 50 ranks of scouting, you'll find your second trail, the one between Crossing and Kaerna.
Perception:
Perception is key to both foraging and tracking, don't neglect it. Get yourself something to juggle. Rule of thumb is your perception divided by ten is the weight in stones you need them to be. But there's some variance based on your stats and whether you have any boosters up. Wolf Scent (WS) will help foraging, tracking (to a smaller degree) and juggling ... when you can finally get/cast spells. Other rule of thumb for juggling: you want an item you can get as many of as you can in the air, preferably 6-7 each time. If you start juggling 8 and 9 then they are likely too easy for you and you need something heavier.
Hope this all helps. Good luck, we'll see you out there.
~~~Krin
"Quando Omni Flunkus Moritati"
"Goblins ... aisle 6, Mycthengelde ... hunt smart, hunt S-Mart!"
"You whine like a mule ... you are still alive!"
Foraging:
There's a list of the general order of difficulty for the foraging items (Olwydd has a copy at http://www.olwydd.org/herbs/difficulty.php), just start at the bottom and work your way up. The higher you can go on that list and still find it every time, the better you'll learn for the most part. Myself, the order I used to train a new Ranger recently was: rocks to 7 ranks, limbs (no specific type, just limbs) to 30, acorns to 45, 45-60 is missing on my list, red flowers from 60 to 85+. Of course, this was foraging in the back area of the Crossing Ranger Guild. Around Riverhaven the locational difficulties will likely be different.
Remember to maximize yourself for foraging: no wounds, no burden, remove head/hand armor and kneel. It's easier to forage in the daytime during clear weather, night and bad weather add cumulative penalties and the two combined can put a real damper on success.
Tracking:
Just keep tracking things, even when you fail you learn. Stay out of the city ... it hurts your bonus and things are harder to track in an urban area (all that traffic confuses the tracks and the ground is hard to begin with). Your best bet is 4-legged targets in a non-urban area. When you reach 30-35 ranks of scouting, you will be able to use your first trail, located just outside the north and east gates of Riverhaven. For those who were asking before about the new trails released recently, that is one of them, however I have not confirmed it yet myself, was only told about it. At around 50 ranks of scouting, you'll find your second trail, the one between Crossing and Kaerna.
Perception:
Perception is key to both foraging and tracking, don't neglect it. Get yourself something to juggle. Rule of thumb is your perception divided by ten is the weight in stones you need them to be. But there's some variance based on your stats and whether you have any boosters up. Wolf Scent (WS) will help foraging, tracking (to a smaller degree) and juggling ... when you can finally get/cast spells. Other rule of thumb for juggling: you want an item you can get as many of as you can in the air, preferably 6-7 each time. If you start juggling 8 and 9 then they are likely too easy for you and you need something heavier.
Hope this all helps. Good luck, we'll see you out there.
~~~Krin
"Quando Omni Flunkus Moritati"
"Goblins ... aisle 6, Mycthengelde ... hunt smart, hunt S-Mart!"
"You whine like a mule ... you are still alive!"
Best scouting I found for a novice ranger was pothanits and badgers. Was far better than arthe dale or knife clan. You fail on the order of 90% of the time but can lock it in 15-20 minutes while draining large chunks and if your a good combat race keep all your combats locked although it might cause you a few deaths doing it.
Downside is those guys are pretty hard to kill. If your stuck on staying in haven I expect you've found the best spot to train it although I would try frogs just to make sure.
In order to train it find a place you can forage and pace like a cat. Get your foraging going for a bit then go scout. That way you get your bonus up. Beware of town.
As for foraging I believe you'll find limbs out the north gate before the goblins not sure where else in the area.
Welcome to the guild.
Arrys
Downside is those guys are pretty hard to kill. If your stuck on staying in haven I expect you've found the best spot to train it although I would try frogs just to make sure.
In order to train it find a place you can forage and pace like a cat. Get your foraging going for a bit then go scout. That way you get your bonus up. Beware of town.
As for foraging I believe you'll find limbs out the north gate before the goblins not sure where else in the area.
Welcome to the guild.
Arrys
