From the mutterings of an old Martial Arts Sansei...

by Dark Ninja

Introduction

Starting off with Stats. The most Important Stat for an MA when rolling is will, char and str. Period. Agi pots are easy drops and int. and wis. aren't important. Any roll that u can get all of the important stats 16+ is the preferable roll. I suggest u grab some and take your time. Your going to be they're rolling for a while.

Well, skill 1-6 I suggest n-1 though n3 and n3.5

After skill 6-9 I suggest partying around in n-4, n-5. Even wandering off to maeling caves as long as you have a good party and stalk zoos. Also it's be a great cash job aswell.

At skill 10 and up-I highly suggest nw and sw Alerian caves. Solo for cash and party for growth.

An important note…an Ma is not an important factor in a lair until skill 22 and we receiver jumpstrike. Which gives us basically a jumpkick..that hits at normal damage rate (and a bit harder) and prones consistently. Until then…our puny base attack at lower skill don't produce nearly the same amount of damage that a barb and even a pally could produce at that same skill level. And it's really not that a poally does more damage then us at say…skill 16 or 17. It's just that they have an effect hex-crossing attacking. Especially for lairs that need the baddie proned. We do, but it's horribly under par. And if the baddie needs to be hurt with silver or glowing, jumpkick wont harm em. But jumpstrike will…due to u attacking with your fist. For multiple hexes.

Best Gear for a mid skill 10-16 skill ma in nork would be snr rbe, with 2 bnrs…or a psi prot instead of snr depending on where u are hunting. 2 5/5 rings, ratburrow sash, combat helm. Try and get your hands on vamps ASAP, due to every other gaunt out there is horribly weak. The only other gaunt that comes semi close to vamps is alerian gaunts, but they lack glowing and silver and will be useless in many hunts. If you're unable to get either, I suggest rd gaunts due to their easy access ability. I've yet to try out bnr gaunts due I couldn't of bare loseing any one of my cherished bnrs in the trade to get it, but it is ˝ psi prot, but I'm not accurate on it's damage potiential.

When it comes to maxxing a crit, we ma's have along brutal road. Since our regualar sweep is a joke in nork and aleria until skill 15-16 and atleast starts doing scratches on baddies instead of girly slap-it'll takes us a bit. Took me 3 monthsto maxx my first ma. Some people make a skill 13 ment..just for coining then go back to there ma's. There is no quick maxx trick when it comes boasting your hps. Acid caves is a beginning maxxers favorite place. In 30-45 mins, a person can make 1 meg or more. But it's horribly tedious after days of looting. (I should know:P). Well, for me-best plac i found for maxxing my crit was aleria. Made cash, and gave my charcated exp/skill aswell. By the time the 3 months was over, I came from a 13/11 crit with no hp doc hps, to a 13/14 ma..able to rest to lvl 17 with full hps. Other people have different opinions on where the best to maxx a crit, and that was mine.

Ma beginners in cob. (18/16's) Prepare to die A LOT. Only place that we stay a chance at 18/16 is Timmy caves, even then ma npc's will chew u apart, and we wont be able to hit them consistenly until skill 18. Make sure u do the hp quest as fast as you can (in total, there are 406 hps able to be gotten from quests) These will help dramatically. Until 20/18…keep a good supply of con bottles in your locker.

Best gear for ma in cob (for physical areas…not psi parts) Is moon shield, 6/6 ls sash, 3 5/5 juntes robes. (though many ma's now wear nin padded leather armor-I have yet to try this armor combo) elephant boots, mamma helm (don't padded and it will be +5 attack..padd it and it'll be +5 def. So it depends on your preference. I myself have kept it +5 attack since we ma's are already def. Characters by nature. +4 Agi ammy (though I prefer anti steve ammy when in dangerous places) and giant bracers.

Best skill spots in cob for ma's are: pillars- upper- ud3 and 3.5 and spectre area (not the lair-the area around it and may I also add in a good party)

There will be more mutterings to come….

(Darkninja of the Knights and Maidens guild)

[End of Guide]