General

Currently Mercs have a skill that can ingore all PDR 40% of the time. That is utterly broken on some bosses like Chaos Root Abyss. A Merc with a 10k range will outdamage Proxy at Chaos Vellum, at least until he decides to invest more in PDR. So right now, I say HUGE +1 for Mercs.

When defense break is taken away, it looks like you gain some Physical Resist ignore, which no chart ever reflects and is a very noticeable boosts. It may or may not be a +1, but its something that I definitely wouldn't ignore and could cause Mercs to outdamage other classes that lack that attribute.

This is ignoring, ALOT of other things Mercs have. The more I look at Mercs, the more I am starting to think that Mercs being "weak" is a Myth that everybody believes.

They suck because you can't move in siege mode

Mercs might hit low, but I enjoy playing it because you get to use a variety of skills instead of spamming that one one.

Like, I'm not looking forward to the nerf where the CDs get removed, otherwise people will be spamming those skills. I think this just makes it boring because you're not doing that much stuff. You're just hitting that one key over and over, instead of using all sorts and moving your hand around the keyboard.

So when that patch comes out, if it ever does, I'm going to play Merc as if it still had cooldowns, and it'll just be a bonus to not have "you may not use this skill yet" spam in my chat box. That's just my opinion.

If you are talking damage-wise, yes mercs suck. However, that's something that will fix itself because nexon buffs/nerfs are like a wheel. Most classes have their time and their weak points. Besides 5th job is coming out eventually, which will reset what we have. Wait a few months into that before you complain. Classes that are OP now will get nerfed, classes that are ahead of us in damage have been weaker than us in the past. It's all a tradeoff.

Oh i didn't know i had to play this class for dmg ._.;

I'm fine hitting my 800k arrows ^_^ i don't care for 50m because that's no fun

[quote=QuantumLegend]Support...?
Anyway in Maple being ranged generally barely gives any advantage because either you're in a map with monsters everywhere or the boss you're fighting does full screen attacks. Close range classes do generally have the advantage of more hp/defense though. Damage vs. range varies though...

[b]Anyways[/b], back to @OP. See, Mercs used to have the advantage of hitting low but fast. Lower damage output yes, but if you were hindered by the damage cap on another class, you could play a Merc to continue to fund yourself and increase your damage, eventually beyond what any other class could reach due to the cap.
Basically Mercs had the greatest potential out of any class, just hard to reach.
Now, however, as you can imagine, the removal of the low damage cap puts us at a disadvantage in all aspects.[/quote]
There's was a thread in 2010, about pirates with the exact same topic. Corsairs used to be the underdogs hitting low numbers but hitting really fast also. I think you guys truly earned the title [b]UNDERDOG.[/b] Looked down upon, but overall the best class in-game if funded right.

I'm happy that I can do Rising Rush->Somersault->Leaf Tornado-> Gust Dive-> Lightning Edge-> repeat or Spikes Royale-> Leaf Tornado-> Gust Dive-> Rising Rush Combo>
I can't wait to try out new combo's. Oh and @above The Ishtar's ring does go from 110-> 150, but the hyper's also give it 20% PDR and 20% Bossing. That stacked with the de-buffs and buffs we have (Lighting Edge, Spikes Royale, Unicorn Spikes, and Defense Break) that's 150%+20%(Unicorn)+20%(Lightning Edge)+15%(Defense Break)+20%(Hyper Skill Boost) for a total of 225% on bosses with 25% PDR (Defence Break)+ 40% PDR (Spikes Royale)+20% PDR (Hyper) for 75% PDR. 225% Damage and 75% PDR.
That's a pretty great buff (though it doesn't last long).

I like my mercedes because I love funding and challenges. Mercedes won't get bad unless the actual buffs got nerfed or something.

[i]We[/i] suck? *sniffs disdainfully*
I feel no such way about myself nor my abilities.

HAH try other classes.. some classes have been weaker for longer.

[quote=sadface3]If a merc could hit 50m constantly they would be pretty op so really any class might be a little OP in their own areas but once you put in $5000 worth of funding into it you have no problems with damage anymore XD[/quote]

You dont get it... a 2m range mercedes will only hit around 10m per line with IR. Right now its impossible to hit max with IR unless you have like 5000000000% total damage instead of %boss.

People always say that "if a merc hits max they are really op so stop whining and put more $$$$$$ into your mercedes", without realizing how hard or even how impossible it is to hit cap damage with a 110% skill.

And for your information, unless you buy duped/hacked items, 5000 is no where near hitting 2m range for a mercedes. I can't talk about other classes since I only funded a mercedes and a nightlord.

Mercs are fine lol, it's the only class i have considered maining besides my phantom. Love ishtar's ring and AFA, 4 arrows per proc..yes sir!

@ytv090: I'm happy to hear you enjoy your merc a lot more than I do mine.
I'm just simply fond of the Bow Masters, even if Mercs tend to be cute.

I still think our mobility is pretty awesome even with these new classes that can flash jump farther than superman can jump...
OT: I feel like the new damage cap makes us seem weaker and it makes people more frustrated because we can't hit as high... I'm personally fine with the amount of damage I'm dealing (about 1/2 of a Xenon around my level). I play for the unique play style of being a kamikaze that can sit back and shoot or become an invincible close quarters combo'er. I think most people tend not to play mercs because of the low damage... The funding it takes is immense, but as long as Ishtar's Ring is the fastest attack, we still have a shot at the strongest

[quote=Fiercerain]I'll be honest.. I kinda stopped using my Mercedes mainly because the appeal wasn't as great for me as using a Bow Master. Mobility is nice, but I enjoy the simpler gameplay mechanics BM's offer that Mercs sorta need to chain moves together.[/quote]

To each their own huh? To me i liked my Mercedes because of the chaining skills and the variety of different attacks as opposed to the average class who has 1 or maybe 2 attacks. Also the mobility is INSANE!

[quote=isteponppl]Mercs don't suck, phantoms need so much more funding than them...[/quote]
mille hits more than one mob.
Tempest=easy mode compared to stunning strikes.
What else?

oh yeah. resurrect, and magic crash.

Mercs don't suck, phantoms need so much more funding than them...

@CaptCandy: how should I know. As I have said before, IDGAF about non-Archers. So you could be right or you could be overlooking things. Unfortunately, I can't get enthusiastic about other classes so I can't analyze with you.

@bluebomber24: Aren't phantoms the same in mobility, avoidability, PDR, Status Resistance, not to mention their higher survivability, and the same on the DPS chart right now as Mercedes?

Well, soon, Arrow Platter will be available for phantoms. 12.5 casts / second = 12.5 cards (assuming you have 100% crit) / second + the turret + (hopefully, cards will activate with the turret too) = OP phantom shooting 25 cards and 25 arrows / second

And then now they can steal DB's skills with the RED update meaning they can get Final Cut + Beserk thing from DK's that give 100% Total Damage + Arrow Platter (or it's upgrade) (after they get an Impeccable Memory 5) = Most OP class.

Also, Nexon removed the duration and damage penalties for Phantoms in the unnamed rebalancing for Phantoms and Mercedes, so let's analyze their skills.

Arrow Platter and Card do 223% each, with the turret doing 153% = 10275%/second (before total damage and critical hit multipliers)
while Mercedes is stuck at 4400%/ second (again, before total damage and critical hit multipliers),

meaning Nexon buffed Phantom to 2.5x Mercedes since the Unnamed Rebalancing.

I'm not complaining though; Phantom's a cool class anyways (I have a 200 phantom)

[quote=CrunchyKitten] but don't you ever wish you could do more?[/quote] More unicorn and fairy dust: Yes!
More damage and numbers on screen...eh not really?(I'm probably a minority though)

If there's 1 thing I'm currently not happy about Merc is the way Nexon changed the EXP system. Now our link skill only applies to the base EXP we receive...

This 'Dark Knight' syndrome is really becoming prominent lately...

Honestly, I too hate having good funding, and hitting low damage. But, I kept my Mercedes as my main because I don't enjoy playing any other class as I do with Mercedes. And that is the most important because when it comes down to it, having fun is the point. Believe me when I tell you I have tried over and over to find another class to replace Mercedes, and came up with no luck. I've forced myself to start a DB and a Xenon, and after even fourth job, I just completely lost interest and went straight back. I hate myself for it, but I've fallen in love with Mercedes and I cannot stray from her. Eventually, you will come to terms with the damage problem and not care what others see. Screw them- Im better than them.

[quote=SuperVita]Typically, classes that uses ranged weapons (in other MMOs too) are generally weaker than the tanks. Mercedes are supposed to be a support class rather than the all-time head honcho of damage.[/quote]

Mercedes were intended to be one of the greatest bossing/attackers when they were released. Anyways back to the OP, after RED, Mercedes will be a support class in a way. The fact that Unicorn Spike is now a time duration and is spammable instead of just having like 10 hits that deals extra damage will be nice if it applies to the party (which it currently does). Lightning Edge makes us somewhat invincible for surviving those annoying bosses although I wonder if DR would affect them. Spikes Royale will basically be the same still. For the attacking part, AFA gets a boost after RED which is very nice

Our attacks have low % damage, for instance stunning strikes only doing like 130% damage wheras you have something like jetts suborbital bomber hitting 590% damage. Also our mobbing sucks. Stunning strike only hits 5 mobs that have to be bunched together tightly, Rising Rush/Moonsault combo hits slow, and may be useful for clearing a map of weak mobs, but when it comes to things like bossing, especially like a stationary boss like taking out zaks arms, moonsault is pretty much useless and makes mercs a pain to train sometimes.

Many people, especially ones who can't fund themselves very well, are seduced to not playing Mercs, but instead play a class for their power hunger. Mercedes, in my opinion is a very neutral class. Its speedy, rapid attacks make them nearly impossible to touch if you know how to play them well. However the weak damage compensates for that.
Much like @Fiercerain said, it wasn't a much of an appeal besides the EXP bonus. Bow Masters get a lot better damage with 1v1 skills, though they are only a little weaker.
BTW: Not they are not ponies. They are unicorns. A very large difference. Unicorns have horns while ponies do not.

[quote=SuperVita]Typically, classes that uses ranged weapons (in other MMOs too) are generally weaker than the tanks. Mercedes are supposed to be a support class rather than the all-time head honcho of damage.[/quote]

Support...?
Anyway in Maple being ranged generally barely gives any advantage because either you're in a map with monsters everywhere or the boss you're fighting does full screen attacks. Close range classes do generally have the advantage of more hp/defense though. Damage vs. range varies though...

[b]Anyways[/b], back to @OP. See, Mercs used to have the advantage of hitting low but fast. Lower damage output yes, but if you were hindered by the damage cap on another class, you could play a Merc to continue to fund yourself and increase your damage, eventually beyond what any other class could reach due to the cap.
Basically Mercs had the greatest potential out of any class, just hard to reach.
Now, however, as you can imagine, the removal of the low damage cap puts us at a disadvantage in all aspects.

Because the class excels in many areas not named damage. What specifically do you need the DMG for anyway. Most bosses are a joke and the good ones are hard for ALL non-op classes. I also don't see how they level slower than any other non-op class. What is low damage doing to you other than making you unhappy because you don't see big numbers?

I'll be honest.. I kinda stopped using my Mercedes mainly because the appeal wasn't as great for me as using a Bow Master. Mobility is nice, but I enjoy the simpler gameplay mechanics BM's offer that Mercs sorta need to chain moves together.