Official Guide: Salvo and You
Salvo and You: The Official Guide
by Crescendo/LegatoTide (v1.4)
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Contents:
I. What is Salvo?
II. Why should I use Salvo?
III. How should I use Salvo?
IV. Advanced Salvo Tips & Suggestions
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I. What is Salvo?
Firstly, before going any deeper into what the skill Salvo is, let's look at the actual definition of the word Salvo:
sal·vo 1 (slv)
n. pl. sal·vos or sal·voes
1.
a. A simultaneous discharge of firearms.
b. The simultaneous release of a rack of bombs from an aircraft.
c. The projectiles or bombs thus released.
2. Something resembling a release or discharge of bombs or firearms, as:
a. A sudden outburst, as of cheers or praise.
b. A forceful verbal or written assault.
Not only is the word Salvo fun to say, but it's the single skill that every Ranger should always be using. Always.
Perhaps you're wondering at this point, "Legato, why should I use exclusively one skill, when the Ranger class has a large aresnal of abilities at their disposal?"
Well, look no further, concerned Ranger. All you need is Salvo.
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II. Why should I use Salvo?
There are many reasons why you, the Ranger, should use Salvo. However, let's flip perspectives for a moment and ask ourselves, "Why shouldn't I use Salvo?" The most commonly accepted answers to this question are:
1. Because I am a failure at the Ranger class.
2. Because I am not interested in succeeding as a Ranger.
3. Because I am misinformed of the true power of Salvo.
- And you've come to the right place!
4. Because I have never used Salvo.
- If so, look at my avatar. This is an actual screenshot I took after using Salvo.
5. Because I am not a Ranger, and do not have access to Salvo.
- If so, simply reroll Ranger.
6. Because I use Crossbows, and therefore have no interest in the true power of my class.
So now we understand the most common reasons why people don't use Salvo. It's obvious that all of these excuses are pathetic, but that's exactly what this guide is for!
Now, onto the meat of this section: Why should we use Salvo?
#1 - Salvo launches arrows faster than normal.
- This is a given. As a Ranger you want to fire arrows as fast as possible, and Salvo helps you do just that.
#2 - Salvo inflicts damage on your target.
- This assists you in killing your foes, which is how a Ranger beats Age of Conan.
#3 - The background color for all ranks of Salvo is yellow.
- Yellow is an awesome color, and gives the Ranger an obvious indication that Salvo should be used exclusively.
#4 - Salvo is really, REALLY fun to say.
- Seriously. Say it. Salvo.
These reasons are reason enough to understand why we should use Salvo. However, this knowledge is useless if we have no idea HOW to use Salvo!
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III. How should I use Salvo?
Before going into detail, i'll quickly summarize how to use Salvo for those who are too lazy to read my entire guide.
USE SALVO: 1. Always 2. Fastly 3. Well
Those who read only that short summation will have a slight advantage over those who don't know how to use Salvo. However, I suggest reading on.
#1 - Use Salvo always.
- ALWAYS. Take the upper right directional attack off your hotbar from the moment you land on the island. Salvo only requires the overhead and upper left directional attacks. "But I don't have Salvo yet!" Then mimic Salvo by firing arrows fastly. Never use any other ability granted to you. Only invest in feats if they somehow enhance Salvo. When you reach higher levels, you will gain more ranks of Salvo. You can now use multiple ranks of Salvo in chains, as ranks of the same ability do not share a cooldown. By level 80, you will be a Salvo machinegun.
A visual of how to use Salvo always.
#2 - Use Salvo fastly.
- This is important. Anybody can press the Salvo button and use Salvo. It takes a master to use Salvo fastly. In order to achieve this, I suggest avoiding keystrokes to use Salvo, as it takes time for the finger to move and press the Salvo button. Find your own unique ways to use Salvo as fastly as possible to overwhelm your opponents. A fastly Salvo is a winning Salvo.)
Here we see what happens when Salvo is used fastly.
(Special thanks to Arek!)
- Here we can see that a Ranger used Salvo so fastly, that the bird didn't even have time to react. This is the essence of using Salvo fastly.
#3 - Use Salvo well.
- This is more about finesse than anything else. As you may know, Salvo requires two directional attacks in order to be executed. This results in a few seconds between the pressing fastly of Salvo, to the actual Salvo going off. In this time frame, it is CRITICAL that the Ranger maximize the effectiveness of the Salvo. There are three ways of doing this:
A. Set up a Salvo macro.
(A must! Salvo's charge time is perfect for macros such as "IMMA CHARGIN MAH SALVO" during the initial pressing fastly, and "IMMA FIRE MAH SALVO" when the Salvo is launched. This will cause the enemy to panic, as they know a Salvo is being charged or fired. Psychological warfare is effective warfare.)
B. Force your opponent to shift defense counters.
- The most common argument against using Salvo always, fastly, and well is that Salvo's final blow is always tied to an overhead attack. As a result, mobs and players who are aware of the nonstop Salvo onslaught will shift all of their defense counters to the overhead position, thus negating most of the Salvo's destruction. The simple way to counter this is to also place various phrases in your macros that make the enemy think your Salvo will hit with an upper left/right strike. This can be accomplished by saying "IMMA CHARGIN MAH UPPER RIGHT SALVO, AND NOT MAH OVERHEAD SALVO!" The enemy will then shift their counters to the upper right, and you are free to rain Salvo-based doom upon their heads.
C. Plan for your next Salvo.
- A Salvo should always be followed up with a Salvo. Therefore, as a Salvo is being charged the Ranger should be considering his next move. Will it be a Rank 1 Salvo, or Rank 2? As Olmec says, the choices are yours, and yours alone!
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IV. Advanced Salvo Tips & Suggestions
1. Practical uses for Salvo outside of combat
Salvo isn't just for combat! Salvo is a way of life, and should be applied to every possible situation. Here is just a small sampling of ways you, the Ranger, can use Salvo:
- Not popular with the ladies? Impress them with Salvo!
- NPC/player giving you an unfair deal on a trade? Remind them you have Salvo!
- Gathering profession? Don't just gather it, Salvo It! (TM Pending)
- A little overweight? Burn those pounds away with Salvo workouts! (Undertow lost 17 pounds and 6 inches off the waist with Salvo!)
- Party member in need of healing? Attach potions to your arrowheads, and Salvo!
2. Salvo your sig!
Show your Salvo pride and post this in your sig:
(v0_0)>D====> IMMA CHARGIN MAH SALVO!!
(v0_0)>D ====> ====> ====> IMMA FIRE MAH SALVO!!
Those who state they're charging, and/or firing their Salvo in their forum signature gain a distinct advantage. Those who see that person's signature are intimidated in advance. If you are met by that person in combat, they will likely flee as they have been made aware that you can and will use Salvo. The following is a completely* legit chat log that demonstrates what adding Salvo to your sig can do for your reputation:
Bob: "hei its a lowbie ranger lets gank him"
Franz: "lol dood thats legato"
Bob: "so hes liek 10 levels below us and there's two of us"
Franz: "ya but he has Salvo"
Bob: "....."
Bob: "OMFG WHAT JUST HAPPENED"
Franz: "Salvo"
3. Flame Barrage - The Ultimate Salvo
As a Ranger, it is natural for you to choose the Sharpshooter tree, as this enhances Salvo directly, whereas the Waylayer tree just makes you more stubbly, unkept, and generally unpleasant.
As you progress through the Sharpshooter tree, I recommend you invest deeply into the fire side for the ultimate feat.
Flame Barrage.
By far, this feat is the KA-ME-HA-ME-HA of Salvo's. As opposed to traditional Salvo's, this ability is on a 60s cooldown. Therefore...
USE FLAME BARRAGE: 1. Sometimes 2. Burningly 3. Maximum
Now get out there and Salvo always, fastly, and well!
