UC: ToA or CGI? (in General)

for a 1 minion UC team, which would be better?

ToA, HoE/HoC, EB/DB,HG,AoF

or

CGI, HoE/HoC, EB/DB, HG, AoF, EC

Biggest problem with running a single minion UC guy is the xp dilution you face.

Without a tattoo you're putting xp into HP/ST/DEX/UC and probably building up something like AMF and either VA or Prot. That's a lot of spread. Without the ToA you're ending up with a much smaller single minion than you would with it.

ToA was always my preference. It let me give the guy a lot of HP and enabled me to build up a really big UC. Yes, you're missing the bonus evasion the CGI gives you, but, UC aside, your guy is bigger, faster, stronger. All the things a good tank should be.

There is something else to consider though. If you're starting from scratch I would still recommend the ToA. But if you're taking on an existing minion who already has a lot of XP stored up then the CGi build is worth doing.

Check out Lumpy Koala's character Godsend for the best example.


Stil prefer the ToA though.....;)

ahh ok thanks. how about starting up with RoE then ToA?

I'd say ToA for the aforementioned reasons.

k

If you're starting with a RoE you can probably build up enough xp to use the CGi. Having basic stats ST and Dex built up on your char, not just supplied by bonuses from items is always worthwhile.

When it comes to building a tank I take the view that there isn't a point in a wimpy tank. Some might disagree but IMO you need to be either strong or fast as a tank.

Are you planning on using a ranged weapon? That's also why I would use a ToA on a single minion. The bonus PTH can be very very useful. Plus you've a lot of Weapon Allowance to waste on 1 weapon. Means you can equip a very big ranged attack.

*but IMO you need to be either strong or fast as a tank.


Preferably both!

im probably gonna end up using an Exbow

The UC equation is simple...

Single minion : ToA

More than one minion : CGI on UC minion and supporting enchantments on other minions.

When you reach higher levels, that +10 UC bonus is HUGE and the Evasion boost is indispensable.

But if you are a single minion, you need to concentrate more XP into HP and/or AMF in order to survive until combat rounds, so you need the ToA boost to ST and DX.

ok, thanks guys. what would be the exp distribution on a 1 minion UC team?

im thinking UC/HP/STR/DX/AMF/VA

gear: AoF, EBs, HGs, HoC or HoE, Exbow, ToA

TOA for sure.. no matter what MPR you are.

Mine without GI + EC = Unarmed Combat: 3,299,880/1,650,000 (154)

Mine with GI + EC+10 = Unarmed Combat: 3,907,284/1,650,000 (169)

As you can see the effective level diff with and without tattoo is only 700kish UC level. While my MPR is already close to 1.8mil. And if you power level from NCB to 1.8mil MPR, your TOA should be around 2mil lvl, which gives much more STR + DEX bonus... needless to say free PTH.

But of course you lose much AC... but who cares about defense if your offense is much better :)

XP distribution:

Make sure that your VA level is equal to your average damage and not your most powerful blow. That is a mistake I made once and it was wasting me a lot of XP.

Make sure you do not invest too much XP into AMF. Keep it high enough to counter an average Decay, but no more. Mages with equal PR will win most fights against you no mater what you do, so don't worry too much about that.

From past and current experience, I found that for HP/ST/DX/UC, the following formula worked best for me: Trained HP = Trained UC = Effective ST = Effective DX.

Gear:

Since you are using an ExBow to minimize damage made to you, choose the HoC over the HoE.

You might also want to choose an AoM over an AoF to minimize EC effects which can be devastating on UC minions... but that is just my personal preference for your type of setup.

"But of course you lose much AC... but who cares about defense if your offense is much better :)"

Lets not forget the CGI Evasion bonus that is also lost. Especially in ranged. After all, the goal of training UC is surviving to use it.

However, for a single minion strat, I agree with that statement completely because of the massive amounts of XP that can be invested in each vital stat.

if you save 2mil worth of level to be trained in STR and DEX that you can now use in UC by using TOA, your trained UC level should be higher or not too far from boosted UC using Gi and EC.

And... 60 AC versus 160 AC isn't that much of difference up here :)

try the RoBF...down low it's amazing on a UC minion...