TOPIC: Newbie questions

Hey there. I was new to TD this past Gen Con and had no tokens or knowledge going in. I ended up getting allocated to the monk as my pack had nothing of use in it and I wasn't very effective in combat. So needless to say I'm looking to equip out my wife and me for it next year to do better. I may look into posting something in the trade section, but first I had some quick questions if anyone had the time.

For a cleric, would it be smarter to stick with the standard Plate Armor or would going for the Fey Plate Armor be better to try and boost reflex save against dragon breath weapons?

Also, my wife is planning on running a rogue. Would it be better to invest in str equipment for her like the ogre power gear, or try and stay with ranged attack and damage boosting gear? And I guess the same goes for me as a cleric, should I try for str gear to deal a bit more damage in combat?

Thanks in advance.

Plate Mail vs Fey Plate - There is no dragon in 2011, but there will be in 2012. And if the Lich uses a lot of spells that require a Reflex save, it could still come in handy. It depends on what other AC boosting items you have if the +1 boost is worth it.

For rogue, it's hard to say. Most items that boost range (except the Bracers of Archery) are UR, and the Rogue's skills are melee based. On the other hand the rogue isn't particularly hardy. My question would be is your wife skilled at the rogue test? Otherwise she might want to consider another class...

I just worry about what happened last year where the party and I were just wiped out by one breath weapon, but from what I've read on a few of the other posts there wont be an end boss fight again like that for a while.


Well, my wife thought the rogue test would be fun to do, and we will most likely go together with a group of close friends; so someone among them will need to be a rogue. Last year she played a paladin and got equipment help from one of the members on here with a lot of gear, but I thought it would be fun for her to try out the rogue tests as well. I will be doing pretty much all of the pre-planning for her as she just likes to do the actual event. If she does go ranged, are there actually times when the monster we fight will only go for melee or do they usually just attack whomever they want in the room? Like you said, the rogues aren't the hardiest, but if it makes no difference if she's close to the monster or not, it would probably be best just to go melee to take advantage of the sneak attack.

I've been playing the rogue for a number of years, and it is a very fun class to play. I use a DEX + ranged weapon build, but this is supported by a handful of carefully selected URs (Gloves of DEX, good bow, Bracers of Archery).

The challenge of going ranged is giving up the sneak attack (though you can switch weapons)- probably not worth it from a pure damage point of view. On the other hand, there are a fair number of monsters that a range weapon is indispensable- harpies, a monster on a bridge, etc. Also, there is a variety of ammo types now available- and it is nice to pull out just the arrow to counter a specific monster type.

A starting point would be a nice shortbow, plus red Bracers of Archery. Both are easily attainable.

Either way, a rogue needs a set of Masterwork Tools!

The Rare STR stuff also easy to get compared to URs (Belt of Ogre Power, Gauntlets of Ogre Power), and are useful for almost everyone. Don't forget the Boots of Elvenkind for the Rogue- this is a must have for backstabbing.

As for armor, Fae armor might be very good for a Cleric. Usually, you'll have to do Saves often, and Clerics have a low REF save- even if you're not facing a billowing dragon's breath, an extra plus in save might be worth the trade off.

Thanks for the answers guys, I had another quick one. If I was looking to buy some of the equipment would I be better off posting a want list on the trades and sales forum, or just buying through ebay? I don't really have much to trade in terms of tokens, but I can pay with paypal or whatnot if people have good deals.

Post here (well, in the appropriate sub-forum) first. Then if you don't get everything you need, hit eBay. You're a lot more likely to get a good deal here.