Dread Knight Class GuideOverviewCreation GuideRacesStancesDreadful CountenanceWeapon Type/ArmorRescuesMelee Attacks/ChainsTankingImportance of Good Tank PlayCounter AttacksCrowd ControlLifetaps and DrainsDamage SpellsUtilitiesVulnerabilities & ExploitsSympathetic AbilitiesKnown Abilities/SpellsSpells/Abilities by CategoryClass News/InformationClass Specific Websites I. OverviewThe Dread Knight’s primary role is to absorb damage. Dread Knights are warriors that use Dark Magic. A Dread Knight will need to properly use her stances, lifetaps, fear spells, special attacks and tactical maneuvers to fulfill her various group roles.II. Creation Guide III. RacesLesser GiantThestranVulmaneDark ElfKurashasaQaliathariKojaniOrcIV. StancesChoosing a Stance allows the Dread Knight to adjust his role to the particular combat situation, gaining offensive and defensive bonuses.
- Armor of Darkness – Lowers damage by 10%, adds 10% mitigation, adds 30% hate per attack. All percentages are increased by one as your Dreadful Countenance increases.
- Shadow Meld – Modifies your to hit ratio by 5%, adds 5% evasion, adds 5% chance to dodge, adds 5% chance to parry. All percentages are increased by one as your Dreadful Countenance increases.
- Ebon Blade – Adds 10% damage and increases endurance costs by 5%. All percentages are increased by one as Dreadful Countenance rises.
V. Dreadful CountenanceDreadful Countenance is a debuff that attaches itself to all enemies you are fighting. This debuff grows in power the longer you are fighting an enemy. The level of effectiveness is shown as a number in your “maintained effects” window. The debuff is primarily on your current target, however those enemies around you also feel the effects of this debuff at a reduced rate. There are many Dread Knight abilities that increase your Dreadful Countenance and there are a few abilities that can become stronger, depending on the level of Dreadful Countenance that has built up.Stages of Dreadful Countenance:Dreadful Countenance I – Your opponent begins to feel a sense of dread within them. Incoming critical +5% and all resistances reduced.Dreadful Countenance II – Your opponent’s fear of you mounts as does the debilitation caused by it. Incoming critical +7%, all resistances reduced and incoming spiritual damage +5%. VI. Weapon Type/ArmorDread Knights can use most weapons. They can wear plate and heavy armor.VII. Rescues In Vanguard Saga of Heroes, players can choose offensive and defensive targets. The defensive target can receive heals or be rescued if under attack and in range. By rescuing a defensive target the Dread Knight takes all, or a portion of, their defensive targets damage.VIII. Melee Attacks and ChainsThe Dread Knight has many special attacks. Many of her attacks are quite flexible and can be used either as an opener, bridge or finishing attack. The benefits of using a special attack depends how it is used. For example, an attack used as bridge may buff the Dread Knight’s damage but if used as finisher the length or power of the buff is increased.IX. TankingIt is intended that all protective fighter classes will mitigate damage equally. Each protective fighter class will be able to tank certain types of creatures a bit better than the others. The dread has many abilities that generate hatred and force their opponent to attack the Dread Knight. The Dread knight has one stance and many defensive abilities that will help him tank more effectively from increases to AC to the ability to block all attacks for 10 seconds.X. Importance of Good Tank PlayVanguard promises to lower the margin of error in group encounters and place a premium on good play. Smart tank play looks to be a must for group survival and advancement. Bill Fisher, Senior Game Designer for Sigil Games Online, said the following in an interview with Ten Ton Hammer: [Quote]“We are making our NPCs a bit harder than some people today may be used to. Areas that cause you to bite it if you do not control your situation will be more common in Vanguard.We will continue to tweak the power of certain types of epic NPC spells that require you to counter or suffer horribly, melee stances that maim and debilitate the players that must be reacted to, the frequency of runners, early runners, and other situations that the players will actually need to pay attention to in the group settings. It is not where we want it yet, but as we continue to dial this in, I’m confident it will reach our intended goal.”[/quote]XI. Counter AttacksDread Knights get one reactive counter attack, Vengeance, which inflicts damage and stuns her opponent for 3 seconds or 3 hits.Debuffs and Buffs The Dread Knight has some very powerful debuffs. The Dread Knight has two primary debuffs that debuffs the enemy’s strength, dexterity, intelligence and wisdom and buff these same attributes for the Dread Knight for 5 minutes. The Dread Knight can also increase his damage and add a damage shield.XII. Crowd ControlThe Dread Knight gets one limited crowd control effect, Phantasmal Blade. This ability will stun the Dread Knight’s enemy for a short period of time. Attacking the enemy will break this stun. The Dread Knight also has two stun abilities and the ability snare to his opponent,XIII. Lifetaps and DrainsThe Dread Knight can lifetap and drain health from his enemies with melee and spell abilities. He also has the ability to drain endurance.XIV. Damage SpellsBesides Lifetaps the Dread Knight has an AOE spell, individual direct damage spell and a powerful Damage over Time (DoT) spell.XV. UtilityThe Dread Knight gets many interesting utility spells from fear spells to roots to health and endurance drains to a limited CC. But her most interesting ability may be that of Shadow Step. Shadow Step allows the Dread Knight to teleport behind her enemy and then immediately inflict her next preset attack.XVI. Vulnerabilities and ExploitsMelee and spell casters have abilities that can cause vulnerabilities and weaknesses in their opponent. They also have abilities that can take advantage of these weaknesses. Exploiting a MOB weakness can cause a significant increase in damage or additional effects.The way exploits and weaknesses are set up is that one class will be able to create a vulnerability then another class will then be able to exploit that vulnerability. In exploiting the vulnerability the new attack may create another weakness continuing the chain. The Dread Knight vulnerabilities abilities are Harrow and Wrack.XVII. Sympathetic AbilitiesSympathetic abilities are a system where groups can make start and complete chain attacks that add extra benefits or damage to the group. The system is currently being revamped and not in the game, but is expected back soon.XVIII. Known Rescues, Attacks, and AbilitiesLevel 1-25Level 26-50XIX. Spells and Abilities by Category XX. Class News & InformationTopicsAdditional Information XXI. Class Specific Websites and ForumsVanguard Fighters