Kaylon

Tbf pala/chanter with Eld Nary is not even close to single class chanter with the upgraded Eld Nary. It is still better than summons tho, since summons lack Pen. Eld Nary is strong but it has big drawbacks - long cast time, targets fortitude and is rather expensive. The best solo build for me is the Darcozzi/Skald spamming Thrice Was She Wronged - a rather effective and cheap AoE spell. Deltro's Cage/Black Plate for armor, Sun and Moon with modal to debuff reflex between casts, the medium shield with health regen, ring of greater regeneration, etc... Basically unkillable with endless AoE attacks and able to deal with any encounter without abusing consumables, kiting or splitting enemies right from the beginning.

The paladin/chanter using summons is the weakest version, not the strongest.

Hmm, ok; how about Paladin/Rogue instead of Fighter/Paladin then? I want both of my front-liners to be able to simultaneously tank and DPS. Paladin/trickster is a very good offensive tank and can make also good use of the WotEP for AoE damage

The helwalker/streetfighter might have the highest burst if you're using full attacks+scrolls and if you like to micro manage your character more than actually fighting. However for steady dps the best ranged weapons are Red Hand/Aamiina's Legacy. Also I don't see the point of using Wahai Poraga/WotEP at range when their AoE stays always near you. Instruments of pain works only with Citzal's Spirit Lance but it comes very late and isn't really required. PS. Also I'm not sure if most people are aware, but while Citzal's Spirit Lance does normal single target damage, its AoE damage isn't better than what WotEP does.

With high metaphysics the Chromoprismatic Staff is the 2h weapon with the highest dps. For AoE damage the WotEP is the best if you don't play a wizard.

The bosses themselves are pretty straightforward and aren't very hard to beat with any class. What makes the difference is how you deal with multiple enemies (melee+ranged) when you don't have the possibility to split them or to end the combat (with invisibility/running).

Would you duel wield or sword and shield, two-handed? does it matter? I'm so confused... Without sword&shield you won't survive high level bounties or ship battles which are harder than bosses.

Mind control when solo is harmless because enemies will stop attacking you when you flip sides. However I agree that Will is a better investment because it helps also against damaging spells/attacks (also there are many items/consumables which help against CC).

There was already an achievement in PoE1 which involved limited resting. The challenge could involve a limit to the number of rests per level/game or maybe a time limit to finish the game. The consumables can easily be limited by giving vendors finite quantities of ingredients.

I would like to see challenges where the consumables and resting are limited because right now abusing charges/scrolls makes the game very easy. Also I would like to see some kind of reward after completing a god's challenge - maybe some boons (similar to Magran's) which can be selected at the start of a game.

Deep Wounds + Sneak Attack + Deathblows + Various Bleeds >> All monk bonuses (without mentioning that Sneak Attack + Deathblows helps gaining focus much faster and also increase SA damage).

Well, you didn't try it at all as a rogue/soulblade because obviously you don't understand from where comes the damage... The Riposte has nothing to do with it.

Well, personally I'd not use the WotEP. I mean it's okay for a Trickster riposte build and that 360 deg. attack can be nice to fill Focus 1/encounter, but going for riposte is a rather slooow playstyle. And base damage of WotEP is awfully low for a two-hander. It was okay, nice even, when it used to strike the primary target twice. IMO now it's pretty meh outside of some niche applications like aoe DoT distribution (but ranged aoe weapons are still far superior for that IMO). Dual wield is probably still a superior option for a rogue. SA doesn't care, it's damage is flat. If you really want to go with a two-hander, I'd rather go with one which has some aoe capability WITHOUT sacrificing base damage. Eager Blade, Engoliero, the new Amra Axe. Obviously you never tested it.

Sorry, but that has nothing to do with rangers. Any class can do massive dps using scrolls. Scrolls are expensive, some of them require very rare resources and using them every fight isn't realistic. Also most videos are showing convenient melee enemies with low deflection/armor which can be easily pulled together giving the false impression the build will wreck anything when it's clearly not the case.

Yes, edited...

For best melee AoE dps pick rogue/soulblade with the WotEP; for single targets switch to the Chromoprismatic Staff. Tricksters can benefit a lot from offensive parry/riposte and have better survivability, while streetfighters have obviously the best dps potential.

I don't know how you tested it but it's not true at all. You have recovery with the scepter in the OH or reload if the pistol is in the OH. Don’t make assumptions, TEST it. He means scepter in mainhand and pistol in offhand. In this way since full attack abilities use offhand recovery time and firearm has no recovery only reload. You actually CAN spam full attacks without recover. Imo it is a bug and should be fixed. Have you tested yourself? What makes you think I didn't test? Of course I test everything I post here. That's why I know you didn't test it. If you want proof, here u go I use two set here, scepter in main/pistol in offhand. And pistol in main/scepter in offhand. Here we go:

I don't know how you tested it but it's not true at all. You have recovery with the scepter in the OH or reload if the pistol is in the OH. Don’t make assumptions, TEST it. He means scepter in mainhand and pistol in offhand. In this way since full attack abilities use offhand recovery time and firearm has no recovery only reload. You actually CAN spam full attacks without recover. Imo it is a bug and should be fixed. Have you tested yourself? What makes you think I didn't test?

I don't know how you tested it but it's not true at all. You have recovery with the scepter in the OH or reload if the pistol is in the OH.

Voidward doesn't help removing the self damage, it just reduces it. It's the -5s duration of hostile effects from Clarity of Agony that removes completely the self damage and allows a second cast (even a third one with empower). Definitely not intended, but hey, I won't be the one complaining about it considering how bad SI is. PS. With Eternal Devotion and Turning Wheel you can also enjoy 30% more fire dmg...

It is easy in the sense you give the ranger a ranged weapon, pick some talents intuitively and it will pewpew....nothing special. It is very straightforward and intuitive in that sense. It is not the strongest class but for someone just starting the game for first time it is actually a much more straightforward class to play than wizard or something. For doing pewpew you can pick lots of classes and be at least as effective as the ranger. The pet is hard to manage and to keep alive and without it the ranger is a below average class.

Doing the quest peacefully doesn't mean stealthing and avoiding combat. It means to make a deal with the leader without killing him. You're never supposed to know the looters will attack you and stealth is never required to solve quests with diplomacy. Personally I play solo for the challenge, doing a pacist run and avoiding combat doesn't interest me. I pick diplomacy too if available, but only if it's more rewarding...

You can do every fight so far when you play solo. I never said you can't. There's at least a single class combo which can solo every encounter on the first island without splitting, pulling, summons, scrolls or potions (maybe even with all trials activated)... However there are many solo videos on youtube where people skip the hardest encounters (dig site,gorecci street, etc).

Math, heartless you bitch :D I missed debates around Red Hand, but I didn't find anything special about this weapon except cool 40% DM bonus for Unbending and BDD builds. Even single handed ranger / x with Scordeo's Trophy will overcome Red Hand DPS far away ;D FYI Red Hand>>Thundercrack>Scordeo's Trophy>Eccea's Arcane Blaster even without the 40% dmg buff (without mentioning the Red Hand has better penetration/accuracy). The only weapon close to Red Hand's dps is Aamiina's Legacy. While Aamiina's Legacy has lower penetration, it has better range and you can recover while moving (you can't reload while moving) making it the ultimate kiting weapon for a solo character.

Of course playing solo is a bigger achievement and feels more rewarding because you're the only protagonist. However soloing using some exploits or skipping fights will also defeat the purpose...