Lachdannan's Cleric Guide

From RoK Wiki

Contents 1 Introduction 2 Rolling a Cleric 2.1 Choosing a Race 3 Equipment for a Cleric 4 Leveling

Introduction

Media file link So, you've decided to become a Cleric!

A Cleric's life isn't easy. It is a life of walking closely with the God or Goddess of your calling and great selflessness is required to put the needs of others before yourself, but the rewards are well worth it. (Note: Not all priests are celibate...that seems to be a popular misconception.)

Clerics are easily the most valued class in the game. They have the ability to deal out a lot of healing in a very short amount of time. They also have the invaluable skill of Soulbinding, which is the act of fusing a moonstone to an object which binds it to the soul of the bearer. This keeps the item with you when you die. Clerics can also bless items, infusing it with the power of their God/dess which increases armor defense and weapon attack potential, and have special offensive powers against the undead.

They are extremely valued when completing a difficult area where the final boss monster drops a One a Day weapon or armor, also called a OaD run, and are essential on things like Pyramids runs and Acheron's and Dragonskins runs, where mirror rooms are involved. Mirror rooms turn healing into attack, and attack into healing so having a strong healer along becomes essential.

Rolling a Cleric

Clerics are in need of several critical stats:

• Strength is not nearly as important since Clerics are meant to be defensive characters, but it comes in quite handy for smiting your foes with your mighty hammer or claws.
• Agility is very important for dodging attacks.
• Intelligence is another critical stat. The amount you heal is directly dependant on your intelligence. High intelligence also means less fizzling.
• Endurance is critical. A dead Priest does little good. This stat is critical since it determines exactly how much health you will have. It's advised not to take a roll with less than -1 to perfect endurance, unless you'll be using it only for sitting in the temple and blessing items.
• Wisdom is an important stat because it determines magic resistance. Many people believe it also is a factor in determining the amount of mana you will gain with each level.
• Charisma has no effect on the skills of a Cleric, but it's always nice to be attractive.

If you want a really good Cleric you shouldn't settle for anything less than the highest amount available for each critical stat: agility, endurance, and intelligence, and no more than two off on wisdom and strength.

Choosing a Race

• Elves - Even with 21 agility Elves don't seem to have the natural dodge of comparable races, but they do have high intelligence and wisdom, and are therefore excellent healers. With slightly below average endurance at 19 they have 724 hit points at level 25 making them good to take a hit, and heal, but not the best for PvP fighting.

• Half Elves - A great Cleric race. They have an excellent balance of fairly high agility, solid endurance with 750 hit points at 25, and good intelligence and wisdom.

• Halflings - Halflings have excellent dodge, particularly with good armor. They have fairly good intelligence and wisdom but have the second lowest endurance of all the races, giving 650 at level 25, to balance their high agility. Big single attacks (like backstab or roundhouse) or traps are a danger for Halflings.

• Goblins - Even with only 17 intelligence, Goblins are a good Cleric race. Vanos at higher levels are usually around 350. "New" Goblins (meaning those that can be rolled now) have average endurance with 750 hit points at 25 but have poison resistance and are very dodgy with 22 agility. "Old school" Goblins (meaning those with 22 endurance and no longer rollable) make the absolute best Clerics, and are probably the most valuable characters in game.

• Gnomes - Gnomes have the distinction of being the only race that can Vanos for over 400. With the highest intelligence and wisdom available, fizzles are a thing of the past and mana points tend to be extremely high. Their huge drawback is the lowest endurance of any race. Gnomes are very easily one-rounded by big hits or fall to traps.

• Dwarves - Dwarves are a so-so race for Clerics, their high endurance is a boon but their limited intelligence has a big impact on how well they heal and how much they fizzle. Lower than average agility makes them relatively poor at dodging attacks, but they have the health to make up for it.

• Humans - Humans with all 20's for stats make a well-rounded Cleric.

• Dark Elves - Dark Elf Clerics have similar stats to Halflings, with relatively high agility balanced with the second lowest endurance available, and moderate Intelligence and Wisdom. Dark Elves do have higher strength and would be better at hand-to-hand attacks, but also have the added advantage of Infravision, eliminating the need for those pesky torches and lanterns. They are also susceptible to big attacks or traps.

• Half Orcs - Some would laugh at a Half Orc Cleric, but there are those who see the advantages. Lower healing ability than Dwarves is balanced with poison resistance, coupled with the highest endurance available and most importantly, Half Orc regen. Half Orc Clerics regenerate health and mana at four times the rate of other races, making mana costs reduce drastically. High strength is also helpful to swing that hammer when Ray fails (as it will a lot with 14 intelligence). Dodge can be erratic, but who needs dodge with 825 hit points?

• Saurians - Saurians have similar limitations as Half Orcs with only 14 intelligence and wisdom, but have very high agility and slightly below average endurance. They lack any other special abilities, and aren't really recommended for Clerics.

Equipment for a Cleric

(Note! All armor values are fully decked.)

New Clerics

• Mace
• Ring Mail (47ac)
• Medium Shield (14ac)
• Helmet (11ac)

These are the best items available to you in the Terran shops. Work on getting these items as soon as possible.

Novice Clerics

• Flail/Pike/Dual Claws
• Plate Mail (52ac)
• Large Shield (16ac)
• Helmet (11ac)

These items are largely available in Trollheim. Work on getting them Soulbound, but it's best not to attempt the spell yourself until you are at least level 16. Anything lower has a good chance of fizzling and you'll lose the 10000 gold moonstone and use up all your mana for nothing.

Dual Claws can be picked up fairly easily by completing the Terra autoquest that rescues Prince Mavin from the Goblins of Vetra. Most veteran players don't bother trying to sell them, but you can sometimes find someone giving one away or selling one cheap.

Experienced Clerics

• War Hammer/Steel Claws (for those with cash, a Divine Hammer)
• Plate of Thorns/Titanium Plate Mail (both 57ac)
• Buckler (18ac) or Whalebone Shield (19ac)
• Leaf Helm/Dark Helm (both 16ac) or Coral Helm (17ac)

Soulbound knapsacks full of manastones are essential to have with you at all times, at least 4. This equipment is available around Fort Mordu, Forestia, New Alencia and Freelance or far off in Dar Khandal. It's quite a walk to get out there, and items are expensive, but if you can afford it, they are the best store-bought items in game.

Veteran Clerics

• Divine Hammer or Hammer of Destruction/Worg Claws
• Crystal Mail (58ac)
• Whalebone Shield (19 ac) or Clam Shell (20ac)
• Coral Helm (17ac) or Leaf Helm/Dark Helm (both 16ac)

The Crystal Mail is found in Donas or Caernelin for about 55k and the Clam shell can be picked up for about 75-100k depending on your luck. Whalebone shields are sold in Dar Khandal for 40k and Coral Helms are 25k

Elite Clerics

• Hammer of Destruction/Worg Claws
• Diamond Armor (60ac)
• Heaven Shield (21ac)
• Mask of Valest (19ac)

The crème de la crème of One a Days, giving a perfect 100 AC and costing well over a two million gold all together if you are trying to buy them. If you are lucky to join a good clan and make good friends by now, you can join on One a Day runs and get them for free.

Above and beyond this you'll want brilled items, or questies, but if you're new, stick with what's listed above for now.

Leveling

First thing, you can find the Cleric Experience Table with requirements for each level in experience and gold here: Healer/Cleric/Priest Experience Table

Starting Out

The quickest way to level up around Terra is to go to the arena until you are about level 3 or 4, and earn some gold to upgrade your equipment as much as possible.

Then you should head over to the island of Vetra and kill the crabs there. You will level up much faster by going outside and exploring, rather than hiding in the arena. Flying fish give good exp and drop gold. Crabs drop their claws when they die, giving experience as well as something that can be sold in the Supply Shop or the Vetran Encampment for gold.

Setting Off

Once you reach level 8 you'll need to head out to another city to find a Cleric's Guild. Duskan and Trollheim are the best for this, and good until about level 13 or 14.

From there you will want to make a fast track to Forestia or Fort Mordu. Try to find some like minded people, and set off in a group. Or if you are lucky enough to be in a good clan, get a more experienced player to take you.

Since you are a Cleric make sure your mana is stocked, and set a macro to heal yourself and those in your party. If you take South Caravan Road just north of Trollheim, keep in mind that there are two 100 gold tolls to pass. The Forest path that can be found near Duskan is cheaper, but more dangerous.

Getting There

Once you are at Fort Mordu, get to about level 16 on Garden Snakes, Thieves, or up north of the Fort on Demon Hounds and Demon Spectres.

At about 17 or 18, set off for the Circus. Here your biggest problem will be Player Killers, or PKers. Try hiding in the corners and leveling in groups. Don’t hesitate to run if you encounter some big bad players out for your hide.

The Long Stretch

Leveling goes pretty quick from 1 up to 19, but past level 20 is when you'll need millions more experience to gain each level. It can be daunting to hear that you need another 20 or 30 million (or more) experience for your next level, but don't give up! The benefits of having a Priest are well worth the effort.

These are the levels where you'll begin to really master your spells. Soulbind rarely fizzles above level 19 or 20. Bless is gained at level 20 and Vanos, while you can cast it at lower levels, won't really be mastered until about level 21 or 22. Lifetap is also available at higher levels and it's use in party healing is invaluable.

As for locations, Freelance is a great town for levels 18-22. You can level on nearby Lake Tarnok, if your lucky enough to have a canoe (50k at Darnok's Shipyard) or know someone who does. Either that, go to the Dark Castle and level on the Chessboard. Once again, watch out for PKers, they love this area, also be careful because the Chessboard monsters have recently been pumped up, so your best choice would be Lake Tarnok, although PKers love to sit on the Lake as well.

Another great place for level 18-22 is the Great Dwarven Mines located deep under the Lost Hermit's Mountain. Getting there can be a challenge, but experience and gold are great there. Watch out for Cave Dwellers, they poison(shouldn't be a problem with Venin =P), but also drop Venom Sacks that can be sold in Duskan for 201 gold each.

Big League

When you’re around level 21-22, you should have enough equipment and know-how to level on monsters in the Catacombs or around Donas Dobhar. You can level to 25 on the Lake or in the Mines, but takes a lot longer. In these higher level areas, try to drag some monsters to a nice out-of-the-way area, and kill/heal them there. Fighting only 1 or 2 monsters at a time will help avoid a lot of return damage. A good way to level is to get groups of Undead or Demon monsters and Deathbane them. You don't get exp for each damage, but you get double exp for the killing blow and will deal roughly 150-700 damage per spell, each spell will attack a maximum of 5 of the Demon/Undead creatures (5 mana per creature, eg. 2 creatures = 10 mana per spell, 5 creatures = 25 mana per spell).

Level 25

It takes 30k to level up, but hey, it’s small pickings compared to the road to get there! Congratulations Priest! Also, if people are looking to have a wedding, you can charge them for your services!

Leveling Tips

Healing monsters and gaining exp was taken out of the game, this method no longer works:: The absolute best way to level a Cleric is by having another character beat a monster down, and you heal it back up. Healing is much more consistent than attacking, and you will be able to heal for more than you can hit even at lower levels.  ::Healing monsters and gaining exp was taken out of the game, this method no longer works::

Don’t forget to level on monsters you have divinity over, it makes everything a lot easier. Use Giakomo's Monster Experience Calculator to help you find a good monster for your level and divinity.

Try to find undead monsters like Zombies, Skeletons, or Skeletal Beasts, and most things around the Cemetary/Catacombs, and use the spell Deathbane. Make sure you have a divinity amulet of your God/dess equipped as this will make a big difference. (These can be found in the Cleric Hideout.) You won't get any experience for each hit with Deathbane, but you will get the "kill shot" experience.

The original version of this guide was written by the player Lachdannan and edited by Shanti and edited once more by Alidius