Overview

The weaver is the CC class of the creeps with a series of debuffs, slows, and a single target root. 

Skills

Traits

Class Traits

Recommended Corruption Traits

Balanced:  Light mitigation, Tactical Resistance, Physical Resistance, Damage for Power, Stealth Detection Boost

Survival:  Health for Power, Health for Damage, Light Mitigation, Physical Resistance, Tactical Resistance

Tactics

02/03/2009 (Post-Moria)

Solo

• Crowd Control:  In a solo fight, crowd control (CC) is your primary defensive skill.  Your lack of morale and armor means you must limit the number of incoming hits.  Do this by chaining your crowd control skills.  The rank 6 mezz Paralytic Venom is a great opener to get debuffs up.  Combine it with Latent Poison for a 10s stun soon after the mezz wears off.  If your opponent is melee class, Snaring Web will root stop a charging opponent and give you some breathing space without wasting a longer cooldown.  Save Smothering Web for an emergency knockdown, when they get too close and start pounding on you.  If your opponent pots out of your first mezz before you can debuff, use Smothering Web to buy you time to get debuffs on.
• Stacking Poisons:  Expect your opponent to have potions.  Stack poisons to ensure that the important ones (LP, Hatchlings) will take effect.  Poison Spray is a great skill to use as a buffer, especially right after a mezz, when closing into melee range will not hurt you.
• Debuff:  Debuffs will limit the amount of damage you take during the fight, while your opponent isn't CC'd.  It's important to get these on as soon as possible to give you control of the fight.  Entangling Web/Clinging Web/Catch Prey (r7)/Poison Spray/Necrosis (r8)/Latent Poison do no damage, and will not break a mezz.  Get as many--or all--on the target as soon as you can.  The 15s of your mezz gives you plenty of time to debuff.
• Power Drain:  This goes hand-in-hand with debuffs and CC.  Against ministrels, your ultimate goal is to power drain.  Against other classes, it is good to keep up, but often is not as important.  Your drain skills are: Latent Poison, Hatchlings (r6), Toxin, and Shadow's Bite (r13).  LP and Hatchlings will only reduce maximum power.  So it is essential that both are on at the same time.
• My preferred skill chain at r7 is as follows:  Mezz--Catch Prey--Entangling Web--Poison Spray (poison buffer)--Latent Poison--Toxin (breaks mezz)--Hatchlings--TK.  This will debuff, set up a future 10 second stun, pop hatchlings, and optimally power drain... before any damage has been exchanged!  This is not always a possible skill combination, however.  Plan for them to use a mezz pot.
• Trapdoor Sanctuary:  Against some classes, Trapdoor Sanctuary provides a necessary time-out to get out of combat.  This is especially true when fighting Champions in Controlled Burn, Hunters popping Burn Hot or Champs/Guards sprinting while your CC skills are in cooldown, Runekeepers in full attunement, and possibly Loremasters after Wisdom of the Council.  Try to place Toxin and Tainted Kiss before you burrow, to minimize their out-of-combat regeneration.
• Melee Combat:  Full melee combat in necessary for classes that are powerful at range and have no distinct advantage in melee combat:  Hunters, Loremasters, Minstrels, and Runekeepers(?),  Use Piercing Attack whenever available and Tainted Kiss when giving chase.  Cut back and forth through them and jump to break inductions.  Don't stop moving unless you are using an induction knockout (Paralytic/Smothering) to buy time, interrupt, and halt their movement.
  • Hunters:  Start combat by knocking them out and closing distance.  You will want to stay in melee range most of the time in this fight.  Don't chain-CC if you don't have to.  Save the mezz and knockdown for when they root or hinder you and are getting away.  Don't give them time to build up inductions, as even a single Improved Swift Bow can spell your doom.  Force them to run, so they can't build up focus.  Hatchlings are useful to break triple traps for you and interrupt their inductions, but don't rely on them to kill the hunter for you.  They aren't even necessary in most cases
  • Minstrels:  Power drain is key in this fight.  Chain-CC to buy time for Toxin to take effect.  Try to keep them close to you, because their damage output is basically the same whether you are in their face or 20ft from them.  It also gives you more options, such as a second Latent Poison halfway into the fight.  I'll typically be around 3/5 of my morale pool by the time their power is out.  From then on, it's a matter of keeping them in range, keeping Toxin up, and killing them before they can run away.
  • Loremasters:  Tricky fight here.  I still haven't mastered it.  Your first action is to mezz the pet, if it's visible.  If possible, debuff at range: Catch Prey/Entangling Web.  You won't have the time to debuff with a mezz, because SoP:R will block mezz and knockdown.  Instead, I would go with Latent Poison and root after 10 seconds... if you can close into melee distance.  If not, root/mezz for 8s, and knockdown for 6s to buy you time to get your debuff and power drain combo up.  Get in his face and stay there.  Use vendor root pots for mezzes (wait 1s and pop the pot), and stun/mezz pots for stuns.  You absolutely do not want to be caught in a lengthy stun.  If he stuns you enough times for DR to kick in, then stay on him even if he pops WotC.  Otherwise, find a tree or burrow.
  • Runekeepers:  Still working on my strategy here.  I have an idea that revolves around using Trapdoor Sanctuary as soon as he starts pulling out the big attuned guns and jumping back out when he starts healing himself.
  • Wardens:  A significant portion of their damage is done via javelin skills.  I will try to focus on power draining him and staying at range, never turning my back to him for Wages of Fear.
• Kiting:  Kiting isn't simply DoTing and running around in circles.  It's gaining breathing room to pop inductions and delaying for your CC cooldowns to reset.  Having Swift Weave traited will help you greatly.  Knowing how much of distance you need is important.  Turning off auto-attack unless you're chasing is also important, so that your inductions start instantaneously.  Practice moving through enemies, moving erratically to throw off your opponent, and side strafing while pulling off skills--facing perpendicular to your target.  Use CC to gain more room and pull off inductions.  If your opponent closes in on you, try to move into him at an angle to get behind him and away.  Your optimal range is 20m.  Enough distance to root him if he sprints to escape, and far enough to never let him hit you.
  
  • Champions:  Get your debuffs up as soon as you can.  Catch Prey helps a lot.  Watch for the sprint, and root/mezz if you have the distance, strafe through him, or TS if you can't take the hits.  When popping from TS, make sure to attempt Latent Poison on him while he's in melee range.  Keep your DoT on him and move it.  If possible, save your knockdown to buy extra time for your hatchlings--he can burn them down pretty quickly otherwise.  If you need the distance to root/mezz, WtE will give it to you.
  • Captains:  Good timing with Latent Poison might take him out before he has a chance to Last Stand.  His melee skills hurt, so after the hatchlings have finished beating on him, you can go for broke with chain CC's and/or kite him around to get your skills back up.  Don't let him get on top of you or you will have problems.
  • Guardians:  You may want to slot Clinging Webs for this fight, as most of their offensive skills come from parry reactions.  Catch Prey is also great.  If you stun or mezz him, be sure to stay behind him so he can't Turn the Tables on you.  Depending on how he specs, this may be a long fight, so it's important to have patience.  Most of your offensive skills are tactical skills, however, so you won't really have too much of an issue getting through his b/p/e.  What's more important is keeping your distance and being vigilant with CC before he can get to you.  If he closes into melee range, be sure to always be facing him.  Don't give him a free stagger.
  • Burglars:  Similar to a Guardian fight, but potentially more dangerous if he gets into your melee range.  He does not, however, have any ranged attacks, so if you can stick him with a root he's a sitting duck (provided he has no root pots).  Your root can be evaded, so you shouldn't waste it if he has Touch and Go (50% evade) up.  I personally like to start this fight with a mezz, to see how he reacts.  If he pops Find Footing, just TK and kite him around until the evade bonus is gone.  That should give your mezz time to reset and you can restart the fight with one of his cooldowns burned and 30s wasted.  Kite, kite, kite.  Don't be afraid to use your mezzes/stuns/kds early in the fight.  The sooner you can pull out his 2 Find Footings, the better.  If he does manage to catch up and get Blinding Dust on you, you should counter with WtE and a root, or just burrow.  If he gets a stun on you, check if it's a stun or a knockdown before you use your pots.  The only one you can break out of is Startling Twist.  Never let a burg into melee range.  Even if you have to travel over half the map to kill him, don't give him the opportunity to stun you.

Small Group/Raid

• Hunter:  Target number 1.  If the group leader hasn't designated the hunter as the first target, mezz it.  If there is more than one hunter, mezz one, knockdown another, and LP a third.  Be generous with Poison Spray, Entangling Web, and glue yourself to his backside to disrupt his inductions.  Don't give them a free rein to start killing creeps willy nilly.
• Loremaster:  Target number 2.  Usually left to the warg.  Help them out with a root to remove stun immunity.
• Champion/Guardian:  Root them early on to keep them out of combat.  Don't bother with the guardian unless you know that he is a 2-hander master capable of ripping apart creeps with his teeth, but be careful about mezzing them--enabling Turn the Tables might mean that you end up hurting your teammate more than helping them.  Keep the Champs off your WLs if they get to be a problem.  If the freeps start fleeing, these guys will be the last ones out.  Killing them before giving chase might take away the freeps' chance at regrouping and pushing back into you.
• Burglar:  Roots are best to disable these guys.  Mezz isn't a bad idea if their morale is still good: if you get them to waste Find Footing, it might make it easier to kill them later.  Be warned, however, that your root can be evaded, and it will be difficult to disable them again if they get out of your mezz.
• Minstrel/Runekeeper:  Target number 3.  Your warg and reaver can usually deal with these guys just fine.  See if you can throw them a Toxin at the start of the fight... precaution for Lay of the Hammerhand delaying your kill count later.
• Captain:  Let someone else deal with them, unless they are the focus fire target.  Toxin might help keep them worrying about their ICPR.  If you time your mezz or knockdown just right, you might be able to prevent them from Last Standing.  Otherwise, make sure you get an LP on them as soon as possible and move on to the next target.
• Skill Usage:
  • Web the Earth:  Probably your most used skill.  At the beginning of the fight, if you can get into range of the hunters, it helps melee classes stay on them.  At the end of the fight, it slows down retreating freeps and enables more kills to be had.
  • Poison Spray:  The other AoE skill.  With a push, I'll try and come in at a different angle than my raid so I can sneak up on hunters.  I believe it lowers their ranged damage output.  Since it's AoE, I try and get as much use out of it as I can.
  • Paralytic Venom/Snaring Web:  Both these skills have 40m ranges, the same as the hunter (longest range in the game).  40m is where your target's name becomes visible if you have floaty names enabled.  Make sure you mezz stray hunters on every push ASAP.  Root LMs if they need to be stunned, otherwise use it to keep freep melee'rs out of combat.
  • Smothering Web:  I like to save this as a backup stun, but often fall into the trap of forgetting to use it.  If a target is getting away and your mezz/roots are down, don't hesitate if it might net you another kill.
  • Hatchlings:  Coordinate Hatchling attacks with other r6+ weavers.  It doesn't stack, so make sure to put them on different targets.  With enough weavers, you can have a little hatchling army spring up in the middle of a fight.  Else, use on Captains, Minstrels, or Loremasters for the power drain.
• Tactics:
  • During a charge, you should first seek to disable high priority targets.  Then, close into the ranged classes and attempt to hinder their damage output.  If the opponents flee, your goal is to slow them down.  Catch up to the third nearest target and WtE to slow him.  Mezz and root the fourth and fifth targets.  Doing so will net your raid a few bonus kills.
  • Under an assault, you should slow down the initial freep push by charging past them and using WtE.  Get to the ranged classes before they can stop to focus and wreck as much havoc as possible with debuffs and CC.  Keep an eye on the Warleaders and help to disable their attackers if they need it.
  • When using a hit-and-run tactic, stay to the rear and focus on CC'ing primary targets.  Use WtE to cover your escape.

[Vyxe, Elendilmir]

From the raid leader's perspective Weavers offer some root ability and some valuable damage over time against targets trying to flee but to maximize their usefulness, thought must be given to Web the Earth.  This is a short duration AoE slow somewhat like a gimped Tar.  Because its cooldown is far longer than its duration, it must be used judiciously.  There are several possibilities in using Web the Earth to control the battle

• Freep Charge:  Use Web the Earth either in front of the charge to slow the Freeps or behind your own lines such that the creeps under attack can kite the freeps through it, slowing them down
• Preventing the Retreat:  When you think that the freeps are about to break, get weavers behind their formation in the likely retreat paths.  When the retreat occurs, Web the Earth and you'll catch a lot more freeps
• Rearguard Defense:  When inside of keeps and holding the rearguard against returning freeps on horses, Web the Earth in a tight corridor can slow down a horse charge which is trying to get upstairs to the CG room, allowing more time for the rearguard to dismount more of them 

In keep assaults, weavers are useful in subdueing dangerous melee NPCs by pulling them away from the raid then rooting them for 30 seconds while the raid deals with everything else.

[Jamers, Landroval]

Solo 101

Note: This guide assumes a rank 6 Weaver. Soloing at lower ranks is possible, but it is fairly difficult. If you are inclined to try it, it is possible to be a solo purist (no fighting next to other groups or raids) at rank 1. I recommend trying solely for the challenge and a good way to measure how much you have gained by the time you reach rank 6.

Skills Used:

• Hatchlings (HS)
• Latent Poison (LP)
• Tainted Kiss (TK)
• Smothering Webs (SW)
• Snaring Web (web)
• Entangling Webs (EW)
• Clinging Webs (CW)
• Web the Earth (WtE)
• Poison Spray (PS)

Optimal Skill Sequence:

TK --> HS --> SW --> LP --> EW/CW --> PS --> WtE

It's really that simple. Let's dissect this a little bit.

First off, we use Tainted Kiss then Hatchlings as we close in on our target. Typically you will have webbed your target (hopefully I don't have to discuss that part...) and are now closing in. The target might be still mounted, or in the process of dismounting.

As soon as possible, use Smothering Webs to knock down your target. Immediately apply Latent Poison. By using Latent Poison on a knocked down target, you are bypassing their BPE checks. Note it can still be missed or resisted.

Now, if the target is a Champion, use Entangling Webs. Otherwise use Clinging Webs to soften them up and drop their evasion. Follow either one with Poison Spray to soften them up even further.

By this point the knock down will be over, and if nothing was resisted, they will have a poison DoT on them, as well as Latent Poison and Hatchlings counting down. If the freep you are fighting is melee-based (ie, Champion, Guardian, etc.) kite them around. If the freep is potent at range (ie, Hunter, Lore-master) stick on them like white on rice while using Piercing Attack.

If Latent Poison passes its resistance checks, and both Latent Poison and Hatchlings PROC (Programmed Randomed OCurrence), and the freep does not remove any of the poisons, the freep should be stunned for 10 seconds as the Hatchlings appear and begin attacking. During this time, if you already aren't in melee range, you should quickly close to within melee range and use Piercing Attack.

As soon as the Latent Poison stun ends, drop Web the Earth so that the freep cannot out run your Hatchlings. Use your best judgement as to whether you should stay in range or kite the freep at this point.

If something goes wrong, and either Latent Poison or Hatchlings or both fail, you must make a decision of whether you think you can last until those skills are usable again. If so, use Web the Earth and kite melee freeps until you can retry those skills, or stay within melee range of ranged freeps.

This has worked well for me, and indeed, when everything works, you will be amazed at the burst damage you and your Hatchlings will have done.

[Nidor, Brandywine]

I raid and solo, so I go for a Jack of All trades build.

Corruptions:

I use a Health for Power 2, Health for Damage 2, Stealth Detect (burgs have begun to annoy me again), Physical Resist 2, Tactical Resist 2 (both of those resists help me against Burgs and LMs, which are my favorites to solo).

I switch out Stealth Detect and Light Mitigation 2 on a fairly regular basis. like Bashel noted, w/a rank 7 weaver can be running around w/41% light mitigation and Light Damage is still quite popular. Many Champs use mirrored weaps, and quite a few hunters also use Light Oil or Light based bows. Also, rangers are not quite as annoying w/that level of Light Damage mitigation since Fly True is Light based damage as well. Light Mitigation also helps you out against some of the LMs more damaging attacks and IIRC most of the Mini's damaging attacks as well. IMO Light Mitigation is a good all around corruption to use for damage type corruptions.

My Morale corruptions get me to about 5600 morale including the Class health bonus as well. If a friendly Uruk throws Imposing Presence my way, it jumps to just a little over 6k morale. I find w/pots that is adequeate for most situations.

For my Class Traits:

armor boost...must have. we are already quite squishy...need all the armor we can get

health boost....see above (plus it magnifies the boost from the corruptions)

Clinging Webs...I use this debuff a lot, need to use a class trait slot to use the skill

Enhanced Tainted Kiss & Piercing Attack...+30% & 20% damage respectively. helps soften the impact of the Health for Damage corruption trait. Big bang for the buck in terms of damage. Helps you more in solo situations than raids, so if you are more inclined to raid, you would more likely be going for more ranged damage so you could slot Enhanced TK and drop the enhanced PA and use the slot for something else.

the above is what I run with...other comments on Class Traits below:

Regeneration...pathetic amount to burn a racial trait on. You get IIRC 120 morale per minute w/the +2 regen...food is better regen and only costs you 5 silver. Might be useful if you fight in TA all the time, since you could get a +3 ICMR buff in addition to your class buff. I won't ever slot this unless they buff this one up to a decent level.

Swift Weave... some weavers use this to ensure they are able to get their webs off on charging melee types or in solo fights. IMO w/WTE you don't need to cut your web inductions. Lay down WTE and kite them....40% slow w/wte is enough for you to get enough distance between you and your prey to get off any webs you need.

Steelweave....the longer durations for Clinging webs and Entangling webs this trait gets you could be enough to slot this in place of say, enhanced PA. The snare is pretty useless though...it still breaks pretty easily, even w/Steelweave IMO. I rely on my slow (WTE) much more to keep prey nearby than my Ensnaring Webs.

Solo Strats:

Pre rank 6...very difficult. We lack significant DPS to worry a freep who is 50 and well geared. If you can make a freep worry, then they will run first. Once they run, you get to score all the unanswered damage you want on them so you are safe from defeat, it becomes a question of can you damage them enough before they reach safety. TK can be run and gunned, so spam it while you are chasing runners, you don't have to stop to use TK.

General Strats in Solo fights:

use your 1st heal pot as soon as your health falls enough for you to get the full benefit. This gives you an opportunity to use another pot after you've been fighting for 2 min...many fights I have last 2-3 min, so using a pot at the right time can make all the difference between being able to finish the fight or being forced to withdraw.

Also, if you are approaching the end of a fight, and the freep you are fighting starts to smell a possible victory they may be apt to press a situation where they may be in a weak tactical position (perhaps low on power or health as well)...then u get a heal boost and things have changed instantly and now they are severely at a disadvantage. You can now press your advantage.

I've won many fights by enticing the freep to stick to the end, getting weaker and weaker themselves then pop a heal pot and now I've got double whatever their morale is currently. By that time, it's usually too late for them to make a break for it, and you can finish the fight in a stronger position toe to toe or finish them off if they try to run.

Debuff first. I use my root to hold a freep fast until I'm able to get all my debuffs on them that I can. Debuffs don't do damage, so they don't have a chance to break the snare. Once you've debuffed them all you can, then commence damage attacks.

Use Smothering Webs to force their hand. Many of our debuffs are induction skills, and for a debuff like Poison spray, it's easier to get it on a freep if the are standing still..or kneeling still.... SW can be combined w/LP to string a couple of stuns w/in 10 seconds of each other too. When hatchlings are out, this can be quite deadly. W/o hatchlings, it still helps but the amount of DPS you pump out solo vs you along w/your 3 kids is a huge difference. However, the power drain of LP still aids your cause, especially on power hungry freep classes.

Some of this won't be applicable until you are at least rank 6, but IMO that is when Weavers come into their own as a viable solo. So IMO pre rank 6 your best strategy is to raid up to get to 6 as quickly as possible.

Raid Strats:

Hit whatever target is called out by the raid w/Clinging Webs. The debuff reduces Parry and Block by 15%, making it easier to hit them. that might make the diff between out DPS'n the incoming heals they may be getting.

Hit every burg you can w/TK. the DOT keeps them from stealthing, unless they use hips. a visible burg is annoying, and an invisible burg is dangerous. DPS down the raids targets, but frankly your dps won't be missed by the raid once you've landed a TK on them, so switch off once you've set TK on the raid target and start keeping the burgs 'honest'...lol honest burgs...as if...