I have decided to make a paladin to play with a small group of 2-3 friends, most of my play time involves playing with them, but I will occasionally play with others I meet as well. I was looking at a couple different specs that involve auto training slash to 48 and chants to 20/28. The specs are: 1. (auto train chants to 28) 48 chants, 42 shield, 44 slash, and 5 parry 2. (auto train chants to 20) 48 chants, 42 shield, 39 slash, 20 parry. I know paladins are not damage dealers, but my question is whether anyone has tried out 44 slash vs. 39 and whether there is any significant damage differences to justify losing 15 points in parry. My friends tend to jump around on characters so I don't have a group design to specifically build around so I am just curious to hear the input of others.

Thanks!

Edit: forgot to mention that I'm looking for an answer that involves the most effective way to play in a small man/ roaming group in RvR

I've seen 4 main Paladin specs in my time on Uthgard so far, and while I would always suggest playing the way you find most fun and interesting, I get the impression you're trying to min/max your char. Since I don't think 1h Slash is the best choice for your stated goal of RvR, I'll try to explain my view on the pros and cons of each main spec. Maybe someone with more hands on experience with these Paladin specs could weigh in.

1h Slash: For players looking to be PvE tanks, this is the most common choice. Getting high Chants, Shield, Slash, and Parry gives you great tanking ability, but you will be fairly 1-dimensional in RvR, being completely unable to contribute significant damage.

1h Thrust: This spec takes advantage of Wyvernfang, a 28 second follow-up snare. The purpose of this spec is usually for peeling in RvR, but it can be good for tanking as well. While you won't do any more damage than the 1h Slash spec, the length of your snare can make up for your lack of damage.

2h Slash: Seen frequently in keep-taking groups, this is the most damaging spec a Paladin can have. Usually with 50 2h and just enough points in shield to get abilities like Guard and Engage, you sacrifice a lot of your ability to protect your allies for damage.

Slash Hybrid: This is the most common spec for group RvR Paladins. Usually with 39 2h, 42 Shield, 21+ Slash, 42+ Chants, and 1+ Parry. This spec allows you to protect your allies, deal reasonable damage, and still have useful Chants. It is the most versatile and, despite the lower skills overall, you remain effective enough in all your roles.

I would personally suggest the last spec for RvR group play. I think it's the most fun, and IMO it's the most effective. However, if you want your character to be a great tank at the same time, 1h Slash will still work for a supporting role in group RvR.

Thank you for the response Aelred! I have very limited knowledge on paladins so you have definitely given me something to think about. I will give strong consideration to the slash hybrid spec you posted!

Hello there.

I'm playing a hybrid paladin and I have thought a very long time before I started it, to know exactly what I wanted.

It may not apply to you, but it may help your thinking.

I went through a lot of discussions, and asked many pally in game, asking what they like and dislike about their character. Long story short, two specs really emerged from this data mining: 1h thurst and Hybrid slash.

They I envisioned it that way:
1- There is nothing a hybrid slash spec can't do that is accessible to an 1h slash.
2- 1h thurst may be very efficient in groups, mostly 8v8, which is absolutely not the something you'll find often on Uthgard.

So I decided, if I have to do a pally, I want everything. The damage output difference between a hybrid and 2h spec is not that big and doesn't worth the loss of the slam and defensive capabilities.

Then I decided that if I wanted to go that road, I would have to do it the right way, with an auto-training that would go to level 48. I knew that for many people it meant a huge sacrifice, but I have time, and decided to spec crush/shield only to level 40. I have soloed most of the time, as groups did not really wanted me.

Level 50, my spec is 43 chants (I like the last AF), 42 shield, 39 2h, 31 slash, 4 parry.
I am still not sure is the 2 points in slash (from 29) worth the loss in parry. The variance in damage on 2h is a bit reduced tho.

I have been able to assemble a template which did not cost me that much, and which is capping everything, and so from there, I do think I have reached my goal: having everything in hand to enjoy every aspect of a pally life. It took me about 6 months tho, as I had to solo a lot and I did not have guildmates to help with crafting.

Good luck with yours, you'll see, if you do it right, it totally worth it!

Appreciate the response Tohu! It definitely seems that the hybrid paladin fits what I want to do better than the original spec I posted. I wish I had your patience to auto train chants to 48, that is very impressive!

Cuthrech wrote:Appreciate the response Tohu! It definitely seems that the hybrid paladin fits what I want to do better than the original spec I posted. I wish I had your patience to auto train chants to 48, that is very impressive!

Killing ******, a blue at a time.