Getting started as an engineer

[Casorinth]

Ok heres my input

Bot heals can be useful to get but they are rather rare and a pain in the backside to get and unless your twinking out for soloing subway or such probably not as needed, but keep your eye out for them.

At low level you should have no real trouble taking on full difficulty missions, just make sure you have as high a pet as possible, trimmed with the best trimmers you can (preferably) and stand around the corner while pet gets agro. You may want to look into building your solar-powered engi pistol for added damage.

Your pets levels will start jumping lots once you start getting implants in (since your on atlantean and clan I can help you out with some start up imps and such if you want) once that starts happening you shouldn't have a problem with most normal mobs.

As for blitzing, a blitzer can either calm there way through or someone like a fixer can just run through, but its not needed to do well in the game, you'll start getting cash reasonably fast if you just stick at it. (running around the halls in ToTW looting cultists left to rot can get you a sizable amount at low levels as well)

As for too much IP, no such thing, if you have surplus save it cos you'll need it to keep your stats up later, that said I generally have all my base stats maxed, for engineer I also have pistol up, ranged init, evades, trimmer tradeskills and the nano skills needed, but until you get to know the game I suggest just upping what you definitly know you need (evades shouldn't be needed if you just hide and let pets take care of things)

[Xori Ruscuv]

Your pets levels will start jumping lots once you start getting implants in (since your on atlantean and clan I can help you out with some start up imps and such if you want) once that starts happening you shouldn't have a problem with most normal mobs.

Thanks very much man, offer is much appreciated.

As for blitzing, a blitzer can either calm there way through or someone like a fixer can just run through, but its not needed to do well in the game, you'll start getting cash reasonably fast if you just stick at it. (running around the halls in ToTW looting cultists left to rot can get you a sizable amount at low levels as well)

Cool. Very encouraging. As long as I know I don't NEED to do those things to be ok, I'd rather play a character that I enjoy.

Thank you all for your time and advice!!!

EDIT: Ugh. IS there ANYTHING I can do to help my nano regen? I've got maxed nano pool... but every time I need to cast a buff (on self and bot) I have to chug a nano pack. And I'm still only using the newbie island buffs! And my bot dies all the time, so it's rather aggravating.

Augh. I just learned that I didn't need to be hitting insurance terminals until 20. Also just hit one that charged me 1.5k. Hehe

I finally afforded implants to get my TS and MC up to 89 each. Now I'm trying to make 5k for the semi-sent automaton.

I think I also need to upgrade my pistols. I'm using 2 newbie island pistols. How does ammo work in this game? I tried a pistol that used bullets, wasn't much better than the one I've got now... but I could get lots of shots off and it stayed at 1/16. But yeah my damage seems really bad and I'm chugging A LOT of med kits.

[Casorinth]

Im afraid at low levels the best you can do about your nanopool is to get an NT to buff you with a humidity extractor and a nanocost reducer (MPs can also do cost reducer) but at higher levels a high psychic and body development will give you a faster and bigger natural regen.

using insurance terminals at lower levels is a good way to set where you respawn when you die, so using them where your getting missions/farming monsters is a good idea.

As for your pistols, I would recommend building yourself the solar-powered tinker pistol ( http://arcanum.aodevs.com/weapons_engineerpistol.html ) as it is a levelable item, gives nice engineer buffs and does rather nice damage and doesn't require ammo (saves cash) and in your off hand I'd check stores for a pistol called an "Old English Trading Co" as it gives +5 intel (buy two if you can cos there nice buffing weapons)

[Xori Ruscuv]

I've been keeping Fling Shot topped up. Was that a huge mistake? :s I've been looking at some other engineers' builds... seems like I shouldn't have been concentrating on that. I think I also screwed up by putting a bunch of points into burst and full auto... I thought the MTI b-94 would be good, but realized its damage actually kinda sucks due to the recharge time.

[Casorinth]

I wouldn't bother with burst and fullauto, at least not until much higher, flingshot is ok to have (specially since old english co needs it and its a good pistol to have with tinker pistol) but not necessary to keep maxed

Don't forget your damage is more or less all your bot, my engineer twink uses 2x Old English Co. to help squeeze a bot a few levels higher on, but switches to the tinker pistol on after its out to add in a little extra damage on normal mobs

[Xori Ruscuv]

I wouldn't bother with burst and fullauto, at least not until much higher, flingshot is ok to have (specially since old english co needs it and its a good pistol to have with tinker pistol) but not necessary to keep maxed

Don't forget your damage is more or less all your bot, my engineer twink uses 2x Old English Co. to help squeeze a bot a few levels higher on, but switches to the tinker pistol on after its out to add in a little extra damage on normal mobs

Ugh, I've wasted a lot of points then.

I'm struggling with bot damage, I think. My char is 19 now, my bot is a Feeble Android (QL 17). I started using the Feedble Andoid when I was 17. For the most part, the feeble android struggles to kill one even level mob 1 on 1.

Maybe I need to try a doctor and a ma to get a feel for what the lower and higher bounds on damage are.

It's also a possibility, that a Engineer is not a good choice if I want my first character to be a "do it yourselfer" for learning the game and what not. Sure I could run around begging for buffs and generally annoying the hell out of people, but I fear that if I just slice through everything with the utmost ease I might get bored. (One of the reasons I got so bored with Ascheron's Call... everyone and their brother used buffbots, and it got boring.)

Maybe I should think about some other class for "bootstrapping". I hope there's something other than a MA or Advy though. They're everywhere. heh.

[Casorinth]

You'll have the same problem with almost any profession, at least with engineer all you really need is your two nano buffs to get a big bot on and your sorted, other professions you need to be running around looking for all sorts of professions to get equipment on to give you an easy ride.

Once you got your reflect shield your bot becomes alot hardier, also look into getting trimmers to raise its health and aggressiveness and such, just buff it up, let it out, and I generally join in once the mobs around half health

I have to say however, I generally like having a pet thats atleast 1.5 times my level, preferably 2 times my level... its easily doable and makes things so very much easier

[Xori Ruscuv]

You'll have the same problem with almost any profession, at least with engineer all you really need is your two nano buffs to get a big bot on and your sorted, other professions you need to be running around looking for all sorts of professions to get equipment on to give you an easy ride.

Once you got your reflect shield your bot becomes alot hardier, also look into getting trimmers to raise its health and aggressiveness and such, just buff it up, let it out, and I generally join in once the mobs around half health

Ah, trimmers. I need to look into trimmers. (I KNEW there was something I'm missing.)

Downside so far is that I've been straight grinding missions and barely keeping up with my progression. I need to find some good gear quests in the world rather than this mission grinding

[Casorinth]

Very little equipment outside shadowlands is questable that isnt just buffing gear or high end stuff theres no special "epics" or such like in the simpler games

heck even in shadowlands and such theres next to no quest equipment, its all drops or tradeskills

[Xori Ruscuv]

Very little equipment outside shadowlands is questable that isnt just buffing gear or high end stuff theres no special "epics" or such like in the simpler games

heck even in shadowlands and such theres next to no quest equipment, its all drops or tradeskills

Ah, gotcha. Damn. Tired of missions already >,< No lowbies around, too... so there's no really anyone to play with. (Maybe its my TZ?)

[Scoopx]

kk I'm old and half blind.... but I've not seen anywhere in posts what server you are on... What timezone do you play in?