Fastest way to level a ranger ?

Hello, I planned a cool ranger build (Melee) but I kind of hate the levelling process so I would like to know what spec would make leveling the easiest...
Since it's HC and I don't want to risk dieing to much I prefer levelling with a bow, but I'm not sure wich are the best skills/supports and wich auras to use...
Right now I'm using poison arrow and split but I'm level 20 and I run out of mana so easly I'm basicly using white attacks 90% of the time...

Strat. #1: Join groups. Run with a 1h/shield and as much life as you can get. Stay with the group. Keep hp and quick silver flasks. If you need to run like hell to stay live. You'll level just fine and maybe make some friends.

Strat. #2: Use a high level toon to rush you through. Again 1h/shield + life gear for safety. The high level toon will kill the exp gain at first but just drag the lowbie along. You want to rush the quests and get to act-2.

Once you've gained a few levels farm ledge, do Brutus runs, or Merveil runs. Merv is risky, Brutus is ok on norm. If you've got balls run Merv. Remember fire resist in the 2nd part of the cave before Merv's lair, and 2x cold resist rings for the merv fight. Summon skelly and fire trap are nice as is freezing pulse and ice spear for leveling.

I've use both methods. Its fun rushing a lowbie through alt-tabbing with my high level summoner. Once I have levels I like tanking Merv. However, I'm Mr. Softie having fun in the default league. I don't play hard candy.

Edit: I'm not sure if you can get the "...of heat" suffix on lowbie flasks. If you can make some dispels chilled/frozen fasks for the merv fight. Tell that wench "..ck yo freeze ray! Eat moar fire!!!"

Double Edit: Just realized you said you're level 20. Wear some shadow gear (Int/Dex). Paua ring with mana and mana regen. Paua amulet with mana and mana regen. Strength/Dex/Life/Whatever for the other ring slot.

Poison Arrow

"

ghoultek wrote:

...

sorry, but that's one of the worst thing I've ever read about how to level up a ranger ...

#1 take a solo spec to group and just hide & run to stay alive basically ?? What is wrong with you ? if everyone was doing that, there wouldn't be any party working ever ....

#2 getting PLed ? ......

As real advices for someone that actually wants to PLAY the game, I found rain of arrows with pretty effective in term of speed. But the passiv tree is first there for survability in my opinion, dps comes easily from gems for leveling, in HC you need life.

However, something I have done ( but my ranger died due to a desync in a2 cruel, made it to a1 merci after in default without much problem after that ..... ) is 1H ( lot of AS with life gain on hit, brightbeak unique hammer is a cheap and very effectiv low/mid level item for that ) + shield very tanky and I facetanked everything, even cruel Final Piety ( I think I reloaded the potions with one portal, only once, but I'm not even sure actually ).
skill tree
It was pretty fast to me, you can use Lightning strike or cleave for AOE ( life gain on hit too ), and switch between viper strike and double strike for bosses, or use a bow for AOE ).

I have not much experience of pure bow build, I only know that I felt pretty good during races, not really rushing in 3 hours races, I ended up like lvl 23+ solo with rain of arrow. Some life gain on hit from items + mana potions and here we go.


A good thing if you want to solve your mana problems is to run with life gain on hit and blood magic, very effective with chain.
If you don't wanna go with blood magic, get some mana nodes, +30 intel nodes are good too for that.
Paua amulet are nice, but trust coral and resist rings more since it is HC, life is the most important of all.
And well, I guess you already know which resist you need when to go through the acts.

GL !


But if you have chaos to spend to skip the leveling phase in HC, you can get PL, people are doing it, it's quick and easy, you just have to farm the ledge/fellshrine/docks after, but it's kinda really boring even though it is faster obviously.

Silverbranch with Poison Arrow + Fork in it will carry all of normal with ease and can even be used in Cruel if you really want, combine w/ Bear Traps for single target.

quillbow + rain of arrow

what is the point of RoA with quillrain but not being able to handle the cost of the skill ? ....
quillrain is good with EA because the explosion damage is not affected by the speed of the weapon and is better with many stacks, but I really don't see any point for RoA + quillrain.

"

sorry, but that's one of the worst thing I've ever read about how to level up a ranger ...

#1 take a solo spec to group and just hide & run to stay alive basically ?? What is wrong with you ? if everyone was doing that, there wouldn't be any party working ever ....

#2 getting PLed ? ......

The OP did say melee build so 1h + shield. Join a group, attack mobs and stay with the group so you get full exp. and there is less risk of dieing. I've witness level 3s and 4s leeching exp in prison and Brutus runs. I'm sure they leveled very quickly with a handful of prison and Brutus runs. I never said hide and run. I said to use the quick silver flasks to avoid dieing in Hardcore. The idea here is to run with groups while being under level and leeching exp. You attack and support the group but if the shyt hits the fan run!

Get PL'ed?... Hell yes get PL'ed. The OP doesn't want to be bothered with the early levels and wants to rush to mid and late fun. I've run 2x game clients on a single PC and quest rushed a Ranger and a Duelist to get the gem rewards in Act-2 normal. Someone was selling a zero quality LMP for 3-GCP. 3-GCP!! Eff that crap I'll quest rush a lowbie to get the gem. Go Go Skelly totem... Attack!!!

Anyway, don't knock it until you've tried it. :o)

"

I've witness level 3s and 4s leeching exp in prison and Brutus runs. I'm sure they leveled very quickly with a handful of prison and Brutus runs. I never said hide and run. I said to use the quick silver flasks to avoid dieing in Hardcore.

the concept of 'leeching' exp from people who are actually trying to get further in the game is just so ***king horrible to me ....

it is like being a parasite
Do you really think that everyone is doing that in HC to stay alive ?

the answer is : OF COURSE NO.

"

I've run 2x game clients on a single PC and quest rushed a Ranger and a Duelist to get the gem rewards in Act-2 normal.

Getting to a2 normal is not reallly diffuclt ...
I need life 2h to get there without much difficulty ( with a new char ) and I'm not a pro at all, in race I see people getting there in less than 1h ....
And if you don't know well the game, you can go there within like 3 hours to get the gem, it makes you know the game better, and then you can feel than you actually have done something. If someone I know really failed to do that after 3 hours, I'd just do that with him.
People selling LMP for 3 GCP are just dumb people that have no scruple.
In the real world, those people are called asses.

And melee + 1H shield in group is really really far from being the fastest way to level up as a ranger, if you really actually want to answer what the OP said. This is the most cowardly way to level up.

When I used to have troubles with my melee CI ( too early respec ) ranger to level up, I went in groups, using my AOE bow skills, because I could at least bring something to the group I was with, even though that meant a bit less survability.

In races ppl usually do: fire trap x2 + poison arrow to support the group with AoE -> very fast XP.

Also in races the RoA and/or poison arrow are quite popular even for single leveling. This way when you know how to do that, you can be quite very fast in act2, 3 (normal).

However depending on your meele choice, you may not have effective allocated passive skills. It maybe very viable for you to use dual one hand weaps for start.