Thread: Is there any new guide for new Lore-masters?

I tried the sticky but the guides are last edited on 2008...I suppose much have changed since then..

Is there any guide updated for Lore-masters?I am thinking to start a new alt and want to decide what class to do..I know that lore masters are the "cc" of the groups but a guide explaining the play-style and have an overview of the skills would be much helpfull

I don't know if there's a full blown guide, but here's some things I've seen during my trip to 75.

1) I'll say this now because it took me a while to realize it - despite being called a flank, your positioning doesn't actually affect it. When your pet gets a flank, there's a visual and audio cue - that's what matters.

2) Learn to use Blinding Flash (your principal mez skill) before you start falling in love with your red-line traits. It's important to become familiar with it while it has actual duration (and it can save your skin).

3) You've got a wide variety of tricks up your sleeve - Debuffs for all three damage types, attack duration, evasion, armor...get used to which ones you use in which situations.

4) Once you get your power drain and power sharing skills, try to get used to keeping an eye on those blue bars.

5) Experiment with your pets as you acquire them - you'll develop a taste for which ones you like more (e.g. I can't speak for others, but I was never comfortable with the bear - I mainly stuck with the raven until I got my eagle. I know others love the bear. Play around with them and develop your own preferences).

6) Get your class traits as soon as you discover them. Some are pretty poor (I can't think of the last time I used Improved Inner Flame), but the rest are worth getting to know. LMs are an incredibly versatile class, but your traiting is key to that.

I guess we can turn this thread into a guide for new LMs

1. Learn what flanks are like Casilune said! When you see the jaws on your opponents bar and you get the visual of 2 purple squiggly lines next to the mob you have a variety of options open up. Wizards Fire will give you a substantial self heal, staff sweep will give you power, and improved staff strike will do massive damage. Use flanks to your advantage!

2. Always use your debuffs! It is easy to forget about your debuffs during some leveling but they are what make you not as squishy! This of fire lore as every time you get hit for 100 damage, you get a 30 moral heal, thats pretty sweet! So yes, debuff all your enemies and at the very least give them a sign of power: command.

3. Learn the cracked earth root early. Once a mob is hit with cracked earth, it will begin a 10 second countdown and will be rooted for 30 seconds. A 30 second root on a 10 second cooldown, nice! (easy to forget about though)

4. Learn the different pets and when they are useful, everyone of them has its own niche. For example, the raven gives a tactical mitigation buff which is key in Great Barrow runs.

5. Stick it out! Most find this class to be a late bloomer, but it really shines as you get stronger so don't give up!

I have a few columns which might be of help:

Why play a lore-master
What does a lore-master do part 1 and part 2

The latter are pre-RoI, but were written when we basically knew what was coming and so aren't too out of date.

Another group of tips I would add to help new players:

While a LM has a lot of tactical skills, you NEED to get in close and use that staff as if you are a melee class. Your staff strikes do good damage and are the recipient of benefits, most notable being the flanked benefit. Get that Master of the Staff class trait ASAP.

Grow through the different trait lines. Learn and use the blue line. You will probably level up while primarily traited red line so that you can be a strong solo player who gives plenty of damage. End game will ask you to be a master of your yellow line so that you can exploit skills that buff your fellowship while debuffing your enemies.

LM combat doesn't start with the first attack. It starts when you start casting buffs and debuffs. A lot of people I know don't bother with Knowledge of the LM, for example, but if you use it you will get a definite combat buff as well as valuable information about how to fight your enemy. When you couple those buffs and debuffs and that knowledge with your actual attacks, some really good things result.

Fellowship with others. Start with simple duos and learn how what you do affects the other class. Other classes need to learn about us as well. The first time I played with a champion was his first time with a LM and he was astonished to learn that I could feed him power. He could feel how much more effective he was as a combatant because of my LM's presence and quiet buffing/debuffing. People think we aren't doing anything if we're standing in the back out of staff strike range but we are. We're doing a lot.

As I said above, our combat starts before the first punch is thrown so always talk to your raid leader and main tank/raid assist to coordinate your abilities with theirs. Common advice I've been given is that the guardian starts the combat but, in reality, the LM or the burglar starts it up for the guardians.

Grind your virtue deeds at the same time you are mastering those skills. If you have to kill 300 hillmen, why not master a mez-pull while you are at it? Why not switch your pets in and out to see how you can adapt your combat style to maximize the skill set? Learn how and when to set your pet active or passive. Decide when or if you want to right-click a pet's skill and make it auto-fire as it cools down or if you want to control it yourself. One of the ways that the game describes a LM is as a "combat chemist" so go ahead and take it a little bit beyond that and be a MAD SCIENTIST. Experiment, learn your skills early and truly.

I'm going to harp on this one point again. The Lore-master is a Force Multiplier. Force multiplier defined: A capability that, when added to and employed by a combat force, significantly increases the combat potential of that force and thus enhances the probability of successful mission accomplishment.
-- Dictionary of Military and Associated Terms. US Department of Defense 2005.

Hang in there. LMs seem to take a long time growing into their potential. I thought at lvl 15 that a LM was the worst decision I ever made. Now my LM is lvl 75 and she's a dream to play. I'm still learning so much about her that is keeping her fun. I'm not afraid to solo hard content. I'm just as big an asset to my fellowships as the tanks and healers, plus I brought a ghost pig.

Ringeras, Lvl 75 LM, Nimrodel

It's a lot to take in. It has taken me literally years to know about my class - A class I love.


From 0-50, I was terrible. Didn't know what MMOs were. Didn't know what my class role was. But I started raiding Rift and started to learn.

I haven't levelled in a long time (even an alt) so I probably don't have good advice for a new LM.


But I would encourage you to learn how to be a LM first. I find a lot of LMs rush into the all-red DPS line and truly don't understand their skills. I never even touched DPS until well after 65. Know yourself as a CC/Debuffer first or you will never be a true LM. Understand what skills do and which ones put you in combat versus don't. With slows, cracked earth (roots), and mezzes, you can tackle PvE much more gracefully, albeit slow. Be patient. Be slow. A LM, with all our inductions, must plan before he fights. You cannot be trigger happy like a minstrel or champion. You have to be thoughtful and controlled.

Now, I'm red-line DPS 95% of the time. But I could not afford to do that without vast knowledge of what my LMness can still do. And what the difference is as well. Even with 2000 DPS AoE and 1000 DPS single-target, I still have to be controlled and patient.

I should probably take my own advice. As I have never traited the blue line. Never truly experienced with it. I am not a very complete LM, as I do not know how to act in Blue-Line. I have zero experience with it. So take time to explore while you're levelling. I would imagine blue line has a lot going on as you can still mez, root, debuff AND pet heal/tank/pull. I imagine blue line being the most involved and thoughtful; but I don't know.

Thank you all for the tips and links..they were really really what I was looking for :P