Hero Class - Character Stat Analysis, Recommended Items, and Strategies

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Recommended Items and Strategies (written by Winter)

Commando

Zweihander
The Zweihander is obviously a slasher, so use it as such.  If no Royal Guards, Legionnaires, or Pavise Champions are available or are more useful elsewhere, don't hesitate to be the shielder.  You still get 8 Shield skill, use it.  I recommend using lighter armor to allow for faster slashing, so consider wearing lighter boots or no boots at all.  It is probably not the best idea to forgo better body or head armor for lighter weight, however, unless you are very sure you can go without being hit.  Typically I would bring a two handed weapon and two shields so that if the shield wall does go down, I am more than capable of jumping in to fill the gap and still have a backup shield that I can either hold onto or give to another shielder.  A one handed weapon is recommended in place of the second shield if you plan on drawing in or assaulting ranged Nords.  It is also an option to bring a two handed hammer, a two handed sword, and a shield in order to either help outfit other slashers or allow some versatility in your own slashing.  Weapons like the Bidenhander, Forlorn Hope, and Legacy are very long and do high damage, and weapons like the Heavy War Hammer and Stone Maul can be used for crushing heavier armored Nords with shorter weapons such as Huscarls and Jotnes.

Legionnaire
I strongly recommend getting Very Heavy Throwing Axes for this class, since in melee they draw from One handed WPF, rather than Polearm WPF like other throwing weapons.  This allows the Legionnaire to make use of two of its special stats at once and lets it bring in two stacks of axes and a shield.  If a slasher is killed, you can easily pick up their two hander or a two hander from somewhere else and take over slashing, if necessary.  Although I would recommend lighter armor on a Legionnaire for faster movement to areas where you are more needed and to close distance on Nords so you can use your one hander, I often find myself shielding so I go for heavier armor for higher survivability.

Royal Guard
This is the tanky Commando where it is recommended to go all out on armor.  Get the heaviest, bulkiest, strongest stuff you can and stand between the Nords and your allies.  Although Royal Shields are common and nice, Defender Shields are a much cheaper alternative with a much more manageable price tag.  For the more dedicated Royal Guards, the Aegis Shield will often help.  The most ambitious (or lucky) can make use of the Shield of Kings, a beast of a wooden shield that can be found from Odin.

Sharpshooter

Chosen Marksman
Clearly this class is meant to be better at shooting, but let's look at what the stat increases actually do.  Very little, in all actuality.  The magic of crossbows is that they do not gain higher damage based on WPF or some other stat, their damage is static.  This makes them very useful for Commandos to use when melee is not an option to them.  For the Chosen Marksman, however, it is a detriment as it means higher damage is not achieved simply be becoming this class.  Sure, the crossbow reloads faster and is a little more accurate, but what most people want is more damage.  This is granted in the form of the Elegant Crossbow and the Big Shot, two great crossbows.  The Big Shot is the highest damage crossbow in the game at a whopping 155 pierce, a whole 10 pierce damage more than the legendary Penetrator!  The Eastern Repeater is also available, so for those of you that loved the Repeater Crossbow, a fancy new upgrade is available.

Aventurier
I will admit, I found a little bit of trouble finding a way for this hero to be particularly useful in a group setting.  The answer, however, is in the rare occasion that something with high armor manages to get into the base and is terrorizing the lower melee damage archers and crossbowmen.  Instead of having parts of the shield wall disband to go save their ranged brethren, an Aventurier can make quick work of units including teleporting Nords like Royal Assassins and Tricksters and can be instrumental in killing slippery Nords that get through the shield wall like Followers of Vanagandr, Hati, and Skoll, Einherjars, and Beserkers of all sorts.  On teleporting waves this class can also hang out behind the slashers and kill any that manage to teleport behind them, that way the slashers can remain focused on the shield wall.  I recommend lighter armor and no shield to increase maneuverability, and a decent one handed weapon WITH SOME LENGTH like the Knights Sword, Hero's Mercy, or Fell Edge so that you can keep Nords stun locked.  Sorry, Dragon Axe lovers, but it is too short to maintain stuns on most Nords.

Pavise Champion
This is a very enjoyable hero class, and access to that sexy and cheap Black Armor just make it that much better.  You get more armor for much less in House Crafting, something that I believe is easily worth the 750k.  This class is clearly meant to shield, but like all Sharpshooters it is used most effectively shooting.  Shielding should only be done if there are no Royal Guards, Legionnaires, or Zweihanders are available, as the damage from the crossbow typically outclasses the damage either Commando class could do.  An exception would be if the team was already very low on slashers, as then it would be dumb to make a slasher shield while someone continues shooting.

Sniper

Warden
It is an archer with higher Power draw and Archery WPF.  Not much more to say there.  Get better bows, shoot some more, get those fancy Elmwood or Ebony Arrows.

Ranger
This class is a bit more imaginate than the prior.  With a large increase in hitpoints and access to heavier armor (note that you can now buy T3 Marketplace Infantry helmets), this class is great if you have issues staying alive as a squishy archer.  Like other Sniper hero classes, this class gains access to Ebony/Elmwood Bows and Arrows.  I personally like picking up a shield for use if the shielder goes down and no one else feels like stepping in.  A Swadian Kite Shield will often work, as that will typically last through a partial wave, but feel free to grab a better shield if they are in abundance.  Do not take shields that another class could use better.  Do not try to force others to let you shield "for teh lulz."  You are a backup shielder, not the star of the team that can run out there, kill a bunch of Nords outside of experience range, kite back to the shield wall, and then proceed to AFK through the rest of the wave shielding.

Sentinel
This is by far my favorite Sniper hero class.  Like the Aventurier, it may seem useless as it does not gain an increase in the typical use of the class, but do not be mistaken.  This class is absolutely astounding against assassin type Nords and Nords that manage to slip into the base.  Since archers are so commonly used for kiting, it should also be noted that this class, if using a good weapon like the Knight's Sword, Illustrious, or Fell Edge, can stun lock Nords with ease and kill them rather quickly.  I have noticed with my Fell Edge I can often swing, hit a shield, and swing again immediately after without blocking and still hit the Nord before his weapon can hit me.  Speed like that is beautiful.  It is also great for taking out a boss unit that managed to catch up with you for whatever reason, as you can now do enough damage to get through that tough shell of armor.

Pikeman

Halberdier
The Ironflesh increase and access to heavier armor like the Heraldic Halberdier Mail and Heraldic Master Halberdier Mail greatly increase this class's survivability.  Feel free to pick up some shields for use if the shielder dies.  You have decent Shield skill.  Like I said for Rangers, do not take shields that another class could use better.  Do not try to force others to let you shield "for teh lulz."  You are a backup shielder, not the star of the team that can run out there, kill a bunch of Nords outside of experience range, kite back to the shield wall, and then proceed to AFK through the rest of the wave shielding.  Like other Pikeman hero classes, this class gains access to Very Heavy Throwing Axes.

Master Peltast
This throwing frenzy class can deal tons of damage quickly. Just be careful to refill often.  This class gains access to Very Heavy Throwing Axes, like the other Pikeman hero classes.  However, this class is the only class able to use the Rupturer, the most poweful throwing weapon in the game.

Marauder
This is a beautifully fun class.  Use this glass cannon to beat the stuffing out of the Nords.  Weapons that stab like the Sarissa and weapons that slash like the Sun Pike both gain great deals of speed and damage from this class.  Use them.  Although you gain access to Very Heavy Throwing Axes and can obviously still use old throwing weapons, I strongly recommend primarily using your polearms.