Paladins, like Knights and Clerics, were also categorized as Priest type classes.
This class was able to equip plate armor with powerful defensive capabilities. On top of that, they had healing skills that didnt lose to that of Clerics and even had some defensive buff skills, so it wasnt uncommon for them to be the MT. However, those who were both the MT and healer of a team, like Ye Xiu was doing, were all experts. It wasnt something that just anyone could achieve. For Glorys Encyclopedia, there was no doubt that he could do it.
After arranging the teams, Ye Xiu went rifling through the drawers to find an account card to use. Chen Guo, on the other hand, ran to the main city to find equipment for their new Paladin. The others stocked up on items and repaired their equipment as needed, eager to get another First Kill.
Only one person was uncommonly depressed: Mo Fan.
The experience bonus from First Kills was something that everyone gained. As for equipment, there wasnt a single piece that Deception could use.
Yet that wasnt what Mo Fan cared about; what he cared about was still his DPS.
When the Boss Sealed Mountain Tiger finally fell, he had taken a look at the chart. As expected, the DPS chart wasnt a good judge this time. Lord Grim, Dawn Rifle, Chasing Haze, and Steamed Bun Invasion were responsible for killing the Boss and were thus far ahead of everyone else. As for those who were dealing with the summons, their aim was to keep the summons from interfering, not to kill the summons. If someone who didnt know the details took a look, they would probably think that the ones responsible for summons had played dead for the entire battle.
Mo Fan impatiently wished to prove himself, yet they had met a Boss like this. It was frustrating as hell. With this Boss killed, he had run off to look at the DPS charts alone. As for Ye Xiu? He had drawn up the DPS charts for everyone to see for each Boss, yet this time he hadnt even mentioned it, running off to collect the rewards with the others.
Mo Fan gloomily checked the rewards with the others, only perking up upon hearing that they were going to continue running dungeons. However, when he realized that they were splitting into two teams, he was a little disappointed. He had wanted to continue competing in the environment of a ten person dungeon.
But anything was better than nothing.
Soon enough, the teams were decided.
One team was made up of Wei Chen, Tang Rou, Qiao Yifan, Luo Ji, and An Wenyi.
Mo Fan was put with the remaining four, Ye Xiu, Steamed Bun, Wu Chen, and Chen Guo.
Wei Chens team stocked up on items before setting off. As for their side, Ye Xiu was still rummaging around for that account card, and since it was an empty account, they had to get equipment for it, too. Mo Fan was impatiently waiting to begin.
Chen Guo took a look around the market and quickly managed to obtain the necessary pieces of equipment.
With the new level limit, all level 70 weapons, apart from orange ones, were facing obsolescence. This preliminary stage of exploring the new update was their last chance to get rid of such items for profit. So, there were plenty of level 70 weapons on the market; no one hid them anymore.
Chen Guos wander around the market allowed her to obtain a set of equipment that was originally scarcely possible to obtain. It was all top quality purple equipment, and the price was much lower than it once wouldve been. For level 70 orange equipment, its stats were on par with level 75 purple equipment, so they wouldnt become obsolete just yet. However, once level 75 purple equipment began to flood the market, level 70 orange equipment wouldnt be highly-valued items any longer. Currently, orange equipment was still hard to come by, but Ye Xius Paladin was just a temporary character, so there was no need to spend too much on it. Purple equipment was enough, that was what Ye Xiu himself had said. So, Chen Guo didnt worry about if what purple equipment she had was good enough.
The card was found, the character logged in and equipped the equipment that Chen Guo had obtained. The second team was finally good to go. Mo Fan rubbed his hands, vowing to get a beautiful DPS in this five person party.
Small, five-person dungeons were aplenty. Barrier Mountains alone had two. Plus, five-person dungeons were there to help players accumulate equipment, so its difficulty and rewards were incomparable to larger team dungeons. Of course, Ye Xiu and co werent aiming for the drops, but the First Kill and First Clear rewards. These rewards were part of a competition between players, so they had little to do with the difficulty of the dungeon itself. There was little difference in the rewards, still having a great chance to give them pieces of orange equipment.
Wei Chens team had entered a dungeon first, so Ye Xius team headed for the remaining five-person dungeon, Barrier Mountains Snowstorm Mine.
Again, the backstory of the place was completely ignored as they darted inside.
Ye Xius Paladin had to charge at the front as the MT. Everyone met up at the entrance of the dungeon and then directly entered. This was when the other three members of their team saw the name of Ye Xius account and immediate felt their stomachs contract.
Ye Xius Paladin was a female character, but what was even more strange when considering the player behind it was the name.
Sullen Kitten...
Even a stoic guy like Mo Fan felt the corner of his lips spasming with response. Wu Chen was a calm guy, but this was a little too difficult to bear. His head hung so low that it was almost on his keyboard.
Only Steamed Buns personality was blunt and frank. Steamed Bun Invasion stepped forward, circling Sullen Kitten a few times and asking, "Who are you? I think you joined the wrong party."
"Ahem..." Chen Guo coughed. She had seen the name upon giving the character equipment, and had time to get used to the unfamiliarity. She spoke up for Ye Xiu. "Its just an open account, dont think too much about it."
"Whose?" Steamed Bun asked in surprise.
"Your boss." Chen Guo replied.
"Just as unique as expected!" Steamed Bun continued to say in surprise, circling the character again.
"Ok, ok, lets start the dungeon." Sullen Kitten spoke with Ye Xius voice, "Theres no need to say too much for a small dungeon. We can research it as we fight."
Ye Xius words were very agreeable, most likely because it would be him who was also responsible for the healing. He was very confident that he would be able to keep the situation under control. As soon as the words fell, his Sullen Kitten rushed forth. Even the heavy plate armor couldnt hide this female characters petite and delicate figure. Watching the figure disappear into a sea of monsters, everyone coughed to cover up their inner turmoil.
Paladin was a class that could be used as an MT, but it wasnt as mainstream as Knights. A large reason was because Paladins were slow at pulling aggro and were rather passive. They werent like Knights that, after a Charge, other classes could immediately start attacking. For Paladins, they needed more time to accumulate aggro.
The delicate Sullen Kitten swung around a massive Hell Stone Battle Axe. However, compared to the contrast between player and character, the contrast between weapon and character was almost negligible.
Sullen Kitten, ankle deep in monsters, tossed up her Hell Stone Battle Axe, which quickly turned into a falling star that smashed into the ground, causing a small scale earthquake.
This was a under level 20 skill for Exorcists: Star Fall. The current method Ye Xiu was using to pull mobs was a rather common method for tanking Paladins.
Ye Xiu, of course, had no problems with his technical skill. Once his teammates had woken from their daze at the contrast between player and character, they quickly joined in, DPSing.
There mightve been a five level difference between them and the monsters, but with their skill, these five-person small dungeon mobs were a joke. Ye Xiu didnt need to take command since everyone was doing fine, with their skill. Chen Guo wasnt as good as the others, but she focused on doing her part, launching attacks from afar; this role of hers was very safe.
The road was smooth going; the few bumps that popped up were easily overcome. Since it was Ye Xiu who was responsible for keeping everyones health at a safe level, theyre characters werent in danger of falling so long as they were in his cast range.
Using heals to pull aggro was also an important aspect of MTing for Paladins. In fact, for a skilled party like them, a Paladin wasnt a very appropriate MT. Since their individual skill level was quite high, they were often able to avoid damage. The less health they lost, the less pressure there was on the healer.
On your average team, it was a good thing if the healer didnt have much pressure on them. However, when your MT was a Paladin, the healer needed a more pressure since this would make up for the Paladins lack of aggroing skills. So Ye Xiu sometimes had to purposefully let the mobs hit him and force aggro by healing himself. How much health he should give up and how much he should heal all relied on his own judgement.
Soon enough, their party had arrived at Snowstorm Mines first Boss: Head Miner Zalu.
Zalu held an oil lamp in one hand and it seemed like that was his weapon. Out of the 24 classes, the only class that dangled their weapon from their hand like that seemed to only be the Cleric.
But a Cleric as a Boss Where would its offensive capabilities come from?
"Ill go first." Ye Xiu went up to test the Boss, just like always. As soon as Sullen Kitten stepped into Zalus aggro range, they saw Zalu swing his lanturn and the oil light within shone out at Sullen Kitten. Following that, the light flashed and, with a loud roar, a streak of fire blazed out Sullen Kitten.
"Thats Flamethrower!" With that, Ye Xiu realized that his Boss was actually a Gunner. This guy was using an oil lamp as a gun! That was pretty creative, to be honest.
As he spoke, his hands also moved. Sullen Kitten threw out a horizontal slash with her Hell Stone Battle Axe, and the axe front smacked against the streak of fire. The moment the two came into contact, the axes surface shone with white light and the streak of fire swerved in the direction the swing.
Paladin skill: Halo Smash. It was a defensive skill that could send any oncoming attack in a different direction, both physical and magical attacks.
The streak of fire that was sent off was, as Ye Xiu had planned, smacked back into Zalu himself.
The Boss didnt seem very dexterous, unable to dodge the returned attack. The streak of fire smacked right into him. He cried out and spun his oil lamp like a windmill, sending lamp oil scattering through the air like rain. Soon enough, the drops of oil ignited in midair and turned into a hail of fire that fell towards Sullen Kitten.
"Huh, interesting." Ye Xiu decided to have Sullen Kitten stay without dodging this time, testing out the power of this move. Instantly, he was hit by several small fireballs. He healed himself as he took careful note of the damage and he quickly gained a good understanding of the Boss power.
"Lets go, everyone!" Ye Xiu thought that this sort of Boss didnt need too much figuring out. With his words, the other four immediately began to attack.