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The Fiona Guidebook; By Yours Truely =D
Topic Started: Jun 22 2011, 11:48 AM (1,097 Views)
MrsDeath
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Hmm I wasnt sure where to post this SO I put er here. lol.

This is just a simple guide I made for our guild incase newcomers or higher leveled fionas are having troubles with theyre build, leveling, do's and dont's and so forth. I have been a fiona since the start of my Vindictus gaming back when evies were just released and I've learnt a few things here and there from other people, and doing it myself aswell and im about to share with you everything I know to date!!

Table of contents:
Section I) Fiona's Role
Section II) Weapons & Shields
Section III) Skills
Section IV) Transformations
Section V) Character Height
Section VI) Equipment
Section VII) Nifty Tricks
Section VIII) Leveling



Section I) Fiona's Role
So it seems easy in boat 1 to run around with your sword and sheild and kill shit but later on it gets complicated with bosses so fearsome that one mistake means life or death! When fighting in a party the fionas ultimate role is to survive!! You are the life insurance policy of that party! Your job is to stay toe to toe with the boss as much as you can because you have the ultimate defense! the sheild!! You tank them bosses hits and piss it off so its focused on you that way your party can deal damage to it more safely. Fionas can solo anything, everyone knows that, which is why people would take a fiona over a lann ( no offense to any lanns out there ) so when things get nasty and the party dies and your the last man standing it is your job to survive, knock down the boss and then revive somone with either a phoenix feather, party feather or an evie with revive! once one perons alive while you tank the boss they go and revive the other member(s).


Section II) Weapons & Shields
Weapons
Fionas start off with a Sword and a Sheild, as of level 24 you can now weild a Hammer!! Now everyones got they're own opinions on which is better and thats cool so im gonna explain to you the pro's and con's of both!!

- Swords: The way of the sword! Swords attack speed are always going to be faster then a hammer concidering both are non enhanced & enchanted and same level range. Since you can swing your sword faster that also means that faster you can block that smash comming from the Gnoll Cheiftain!! Try swinging a 0 attack speed sword compared to a +6 attack speed sword and you'll see the difference in the attacking speed (only applies to normal attacks) Swords are also better for Heavy Stander Canceling ( see Section VII) Nifty Tricks for more info ) since it doesnt work as well with hammers thats means swords got a higher survival rate. Always remember faster swings = faster blocks! Swords also have a much higher Balance then hammers, Balance is how wide your damage range is, the higher the balance the more often you will peak your max damage! So not only are you faster your more damage is mroe accurate =D Swords do how ever have a lower critical rate then hammers, BOOO!! But if you max out Critical Hit you'll be critting alot more! You can even enchant your weaposn for more critical aswell!!

- Hammers: The ultimate offense! Hammers are by far the most damage dealign weapon in Vindictus! a fulyl charged stigma will open anyones eyes as to how much damage you just delt in that 1 hit. Hammers are slower then swords but theyre monsterous attack makes up for it! Hammers can Heavy Stander Cancel now with the revamp how ever its not as good as the swords Heavy Stander Cancel! Hammers damage spread is really wide, Use a stigma on a lower level boss for example and pay a close attention to how much damage your dealing you can see the gap easily! But who cares we got godly damage XD Hammers critical is alot higher then most swords, Hammers also have a No Flinch when charging stigma, Only crits off regular mobs, or an attack from a boss will knock out of that charge up.

- Overall: Most fionas use both especially at higher levels when they have more AP to contribute to weapon skills, however each person has 1 weapon they rely on most and it depends on your play style, Swords = Deffensive & Hammers = Offensive!


Shields
Sheilds save your ass no ifs ands or buts. There are two types of shields Large Shield & Small Shield. I'll be explainign the differences of both but as a fiona your going to need to use both, some bosses are easier with small shields and some are easier with the large.

- Small Shield: As you more then likely already know you start off with one lol. Small shields are perfect for boats 1 - 4 hell even some 5,6 & 7 too! All depends on how well you know your boss. As a small shield weilder in later boats your going to have to distinguish between Normal & Smash attacks from your boss which cna eb difficult at times... Now we all know sheilds will break so dont hold space ( guard ) for 10 seconds waiting till that boss to do his kick, it will consume alot more durability. When you block at last second its known as Perfect Guard and consumes virtually no durability, I have heard it consumes somewhere areound 1/15 or 1/16 durability tho which if eff all lol. How do you know if you've done a Perfect Guard or not ? The sparks form the sheild. If you see yellow your guarding too soon, if you see a greenish blue you got it bang on! congrats! Small shields also have a combo shortener with perfect guard ( PG ) lets say you just Perfect Guarded a kick from Gnoll Cheiftain, if you press L+R that will do Ivory Sweep OR if you pres LL+R you will do an amaranth kick!!! Same for hammers L+R = Butterfly & LL+R = stigma, that saves you LOTS of time to do your combo! Practice this well!! Small shields also get 3 types of counter attacks. Your basic Counter Attack is your most effective counter. When your Perfect Guard a hit and press Smash you will perform a counter attack, it has a high knock down % on bosses much like amaranth kick but its easier to launch. Counter attacks consume shield durability fairly fast so rank it up quick your gonna need it! Downward Counter & Heavy Stander Counter are useful, how ever theyre not as damaging, they dont got as much AOE as the regular Counter thats why I find people bearly use them., Dont get me wrong theyre great for getting back on your feet and landing a few hits in to get you back in action!!

- Large Shield: Large Shields are available at level 42! But anyways They grant more defense then Small Shields AND when you use Heavy Stander you dont get thrown back 10 feet either you stand still like the tank you are!! But in exchange for this bonus you lose the ability to perform Counter attacks AND Perfect Gaurd combo shorteners!! Large Shields are generally used more for Raid battles like Hidden, Blood Lord, Titan, Thor etc as Small Shields are ususally used for like Another Sling Shot, Dead End Street & Ocean Scent.


Section III) Skills
It would take me for ever to list out each skill and describe what it does, So what im gonna do here is List your important skills and what you should focus on ranking.
Critical Hit
Defense Mastery
Counter Attack
Guard
Heavy Stander
Smash Mastery
Stigma (Hammer)
Butterfly Swing (Hammer)
Blossom Blow (Sword)
Amaranth Kick ( Sword)
Standing Endurance
Battle Respiration
Life Flare
Stamina Mastery
Large Shield Mastery
Hammer & Sword Mastery
Shield Mastery
Weight Endurance (Not so vital at higher levels but it helps at lower levels)
Heavy armor Proficency
Plate armor Proficency

You absolutely need to fully rank those skills!!! Them skills will provide Deffensive, offensive & buffs (+ stamina & Stamina regen) make sure you rank your shield & counter attack before ranking ANYTHING else! You dont block hits with your face, you block them with your shield and the less it breaks the better unless you wanna try to block with your face xD


Section IV) Transformations
Atlast your level 40! Now it's time to make the decision to walk to path of darkness or light!! There has been so so many discussions about which is better between the two and theyre so so very close that you can just go based on appearance lol! The best way to make the decision I found was to ask your self: Do I want a stronger offense or a stronger deffense ? That basicly settles it. Also when you get a transformation they will both have an attack increase, but the later skills for defense / offense differentiates the two transformations. And after you've reaches Level 10 Dark Knight / Paladin you can kick it up a notch and go Stage 2 Dark Knight / Paladin for an even more Offense / Deffense!!


Section V) Character Height
Who ever said size doesnt matter ? I never thought id ever say this but you want to be small!!! You want a short fiona! why you ask ? Shorter fionas have a shorter swing, shorter swing means more speed!! Since we always fight toe to toe with the boss we dont need range at all! we need speed!! You may not think its much of a difference but it really is, a tall fiona is 4% slower then a short fiona, Every little bit helps!!


Section VI) Equipment
Fionas are always face to face, toe to toe with the boss. Its a dangerous spot for us! Yes we do have a shield to save our asses BUT!! what happens when we dont guard in time ? We take it head on! And you'll want to be well prepared for this by using Heavy &/ or Plate Armor for the most deffense possible!! Boats 1 through 3 arent much of a challenge so you can wear the skimpy clothing if you desire. How ever your in for a change come boat 4, just try fighting Blood Lord wearing sweetie bear.... here is my list of what armor sets you should use!

- Armor:
Crimson Rage: Starting at level 8-12 it provides a decent HP boost +100 HP and decent deffense!
Northern Pike: Starting at level 16 - 22, Its more for the defense before your set of Blood Prince!
Blood Prince: Starting at level 26 - 32 it provides Great defense and + str for offense! it is a Must have set!
Spider Lord: Level 38+ Its basicly the same as Blood prince only more Defense and Str!
Laghodessa Slayer Set: Level 44+ Craft your Spiderlord Set into laghodessa for even more of a stat boost!!
Shinning Will: Level 56+ Its a VERY good set for +Deffense and Str, comparable with some level 61+ sets too!

As of 61+ you can choose between Black hammer, Holy Wing, Lorica, etc theres alot to chosoe from. Some people even use a micture of sets for example the most famous one is 3 Black hammer and 2 Swift. Black hammer Helm, Chest & Pants combined with Swift Gloves & Boots gives you the most Str possible!!

- Weapons & Shields:

- Swords
Sword of Salvation: Level 1+
Red Metal Long Sword: Level 12+
Sword of Life: Level 26+
Ainle Long Sword: level 32+
Nightmare: level 44+
Ivory: Level 54+
Holy Defender / Dreamwalker: Level 61+

- Long Hammer
Long Hammer: Level 24+
The Capricorn: Level 32+
Armadillo: Level 36+
Stigma: level 44+
Ivory: Level 54+
Black Hammer / Chiulin level 61+

- Small Shields
Wooden Shield: Level1+
Kobold Buckler: Level 12+
Spiked Shield: level 18+
Eagle Heart: Level 28+
Blood SKin Shield: Level 44+
Knight Shield: Level 52+
Chiulin battle Shield: Level 61+

- Large Shields
Kite Shield: Level 42+
Horn Shield: Level 50+
Jirkal / Chiulin large Shield: Level 61+



Section VII) Nifty Tricks
Here is the misc stuff that i've come across that will deffinately benefit you!

- Heavy Stander Cancel
Okay launch a boat anyboat and do a Amaranth Kick, Now do it again BUT this time when your foot it raised and leg fulky extended press SPACE + W ( heavy stander) and you should skip the recovery animation, This works on almost any skill out there that fionas use, practice practice practice!! it is a huge life saver!!

- Attacking Air
Okay it sounds stupid but trust me it aint! Sometimes we cant help it when a boss targets another party member, create some distance, and start attacking, LLLL+R for example and all the normal attacks hit nothing but air except the smash hits the boss to re-divert his attention back to you. If you havent noticed it takes longer to cut through an enemy then it does air, try it sometime! ( with the exception of hammers)

- Ducking
Your probably like WTF you can duck ? If you use Heavy Stander you assume a crouching position, you can actually use this to avoid certain attacks like Gaint Spiders Left claw swipe and stuff like that, I've even seen a KR fiona use Stigma to crouch under Ingkells AOE swing, =D It only works on select bosses and some attacks, but it is quite useful.

- The Simultanious Exchange! ( WAS REMOVED WITH KAROK PATCH =( )When using stigma and charging it up is tough, and should only be used on a knocked down, stunned or frozen boss, but sometimes while hes focused on another person you can charge this sucker up. What happens when he goes to hit you and your on your second charge ? just release it, you'll get hit but you'll also hit the boss with it and you wont budge, so not only is it a simultanious exchange but you dotn flinch either!!

- Stigma Cancelation
Alot of people dont know this but if you feel the Simultanious exhcange is too risky when using stigma you can also Heavy Stand while charging it up to save your ass when you need it!!

- Dash Smash!
Sprint + R = A very fast smash using your shield. This can be used for stunning mobs. AND recovering from Heavy Stander. Try doing your amaranth kick and heavy stander, See how long it takes to stand back up ? try using Dash Smash right afterwards! it should be signifficantly quicker, And the best part is, large shields can spam this since large shields stand back up, small shields kind of step back and slowly come back forward. Try it out! LLLL+R + SPACE + W + SHIFT + R its a long combo but its nice to use occasionaly! Check out Iohanna's tutorials for a visual on how its done. It hard to do but well worth it.


Section VIII) Leveling
Leveling a Fiona is rather easy since we are capable of soloing various battles with ease for much more exp!!
The fastest way to level a fiona is obviously Main Story & Sub story Quests! But when grinding runs, look for somthing with the most amount of exp and least amount of time to the boss! Also teaming up with 1 other player makes a world of difference and not much of a difference in EXP gains. try it sometime!
Levels 1- 12 Boat 1 story line / Decisive battle ( Warriors challenge oath has very few maps )
12 - 20 Boat 2 Story
20 - 31 White Tyrant solo's OR boat 2 / 3 story line
31 - 41 Blood prince spamming
41 - 70 - Hidden (the BEST grinding run ever) But make sure you do story line aswell for added exp!



Ummm thats everything I can think off off the top of my head. If you got any questions feel free to ask i should be able to answer it!
Go Fionas!
Edited by MrsDeath, Jul 5 2011, 11:31 AM.
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Akamara
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after reading this my fiona went drab to fab!!!! lol all infomercial like
but seriously i want to lvl my fiona now lol
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MrsDeath
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Haha you should =D glad this made you want to level your fiona again! xD
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Lethop
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Administrator
"I Never thought I'd say this but you wanna be small!!!"
I lol'ed right there.

But in all seriousness, wow. Amazing, just amazing. Very indepth guid, and like Mikey said, it makes me wish my Fiona was higher leveled (I enjoy Karok too much for Evie and Fiona hehe). I will make sure to make a mentor or advice section soon in the guild programs, we can move this there then.

Great job, Dan!
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MrsDeath
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Haha yeah i tried to add a lil humor to it xD
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Akamara
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lol ill leave evie to vrix
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Rozen
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HOLY HOLY HOLY DEATHLY DEATH DEATH It's too freaking long.... I shall give up on my fiona
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Sumanitu
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I needed some of those tips of what swords and shields are bettter for my Sword Fiona in 60's ^_^
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WarriorFiona
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This Guide Helped A Lot, Thank You ^_^
Well Done, Dan :)
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MrsDeath
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Thank you!
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