Been gone a while, old Stalker with a Question...
By
Blitzwulf,
Posted on: 2009-06-15 05:26 in Soldiers of Arachnos
The Stalker will be a little tougher and do a little more damage.
The Night Widow buffs the team a Ton.
Wavicle, Energy/Energy Blaster, dinged 50 in Issue 4, summer of 2005.
@Wavicle, mostly on the Justice server.
For stalkers they added a fear effect after you do an assasin strike. It is pretty impressive and can fear the mobs around the target giving you a chance to run like mad.
I have to say though, the widow totally rocks and has so much more to offer to a team. Be sure to take your tactical trainings for at least defense and mind link, and if you can fit in the assault one by all means grab it as well.
Leadership pool - grab manuevers as well.
You'll be a totally team friendly widow with a kicking dps chain. Use a Gaussian chance for buildup in your Followup to start off your attack chain.
Widows aren't as similar to Stalkers as they are to Brutes with imperfect stealth. Widow Mask Presence won't make you undetectable like a Stalker's Hide. If you're standing right next to an enemy you'll only have a second or two before they detect you. You'll need a +Stealth IO to remain unseen.
That said, the intial crits let you take big chunks out of just about anything and Night Widows get Placate so you can keep 'em coming. Night Widow attacks generally have quick animations which gives them high DPS but can cause Endurance issues. I highly recommend End Redux after you get accuracy and damage in.
As other posters have said, Tactical Training powers are important (Most can be skipped if you want but TT: Manuevers is a must). They buff you as well as the team so they serve a dual purpose. Mind Link is a huge boon to you and any teams you end up on. The Night Widow version has a shorter recharge time than the Fortunata version so it's easier to perma with IOs.
Having said all that, if you wanna play like a Stalker roll up a Bane Spider. Their Cloaking Device gives perfect stealth without outside assistance and they get an "Executioner's Strike" when Shatter lands from hidden status. It's the equivalent of Assassin's Strike. Bane's get Placate as well so they feel more like Stalkers with ranged attacks as opposed to stealthy Brutes.
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The last time I played was just before i12 I think. My main is a Claws/Nin Stalker. I took a break just before the Stalker buff patch and the VEATs hit.
My question is, how do current Stalkers compare to a Night Widow that would be built/played like a Stalker?
Just curious what I can expect from my SoA. Thanks to anyone with the time to give me the rundown on this.
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Welcome back 
Unless you solely PvP, Stalkers are obsolete.
Really, I mean it. There is nothing a Stalker can offer a team, that someone else can't do better.
They've been replaced by Banes and Widows.
Take your "team buffs" (because they help you too). Tactical Training: Maneuvers is the [censored].
Have fun!
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Thanks for the replies, all. Considering that I went so far as to take the Leadership pool in my old Stalker build for 'team-friendliness' (and Assault for that bit of extra damage >.>
, the SoA might be what I am looking for.
Thanks again.
"Scrappers don't want the bit of dignity that Brutes left them taken away by (lol)Stalkers." -Delta_Strider, on Stalker buffs.
Current Project: Hard Goodbye, StJ/Nin
Retired: Blitzwulf, Claws/Nin (50); Perdition's Blade, Night Widow (50)
The last time I played was just before i12 I think. My main is a Claws/Nin Stalker. I took a break just before the Stalker buff patch and the VEATs hit.
My question is, how do current Stalkers compare to a Night Widow that would be built/played like a Stalker?
Just curious what I can expect from my SoA. Thanks to anyone with the time to give me the rundown on this.
"Scrappers don't want the bit of dignity that Brutes left them taken away by (lol)Stalkers." -Delta_Strider, on Stalker buffs.
Current Project: Hard Goodbye, StJ/Nin
Retired: Blitzwulf, Claws/Nin (50); Perdition's Blade, Night Widow (50)