I don't hate myself enough.

Completed it for the first time last week. It took a lot of patience but I'm glad I did it. Got a sharpened 2 hand axe at the end. I'm not a particularly strong player so I certainly struggled but got there in the end.

Ran it about 30 times and have most weapons in the needed traits minus sharpened inferno, maul and daggers.

Bobby_V_Rockit wrote: »

Cant beat stage 1 lol

Are you a tank? Or low cp? Stage 1 introduces the concept of 'dps race', a concept the other 8 stages will reinforce. It's rough if you don't build for max damage.

Haven't tried it yet, but I've been away for some time due to some RL interference so I've really only actually had access to the content for a few weeks. Still got some other stuff on the to do list to catch up on that is ahead of MA, one of which being getting my character back up to speed with gear and builds. Could be a while though since I generally don't like running cookie cutters and tend to use unusual setups. But I do plan to get to it eventually.

Bobby_V_Rockit wrote: »

FriedEggSandwich wrote: »

Bobby_V_Rockit wrote: »

Cant beat stage 1 lol

Are you a tank? Or low cp? Stage 1 introduces the concept of 'dps race', a concept the other 8 stages will reinforce. It's rough if you don't build for max damage.

Not a tank, max CP, just terrible at the game. Ah well!

watch some videos man. I feel like if I can do it anyone can lol.

im stuck on stage 5 boss round with my mag soc and magplar but yesterday i made it till the stage 6 boss round with my stam sorc using a " cancer " build ( viper , br , tremorscale )
ps : i hope i finish it before they nerf viper

Cleared on all classes, stam and magic
Cleared in 1st person
Cleared using only heavy attacks.

Still haven't got any BiS weapons, not a single bloody one

Doctordarkspawn wrote: »

This is the one piece of content that requires direct builds specifically for it to counter some of it's mechanics. In many cases, those mechanics are absolute garbage. Random mines on arena 7. The traps on Arena 2. They serve no purpose other than making sustained fights difficult, leading into reason 2.

You don't need specific builds to survive stages 2 and 7. The plants on stage 7 are mostly a test of situational awareness and reaction. I died to them all the time at first, and now I rarely touch them. They can still pose problems and can cause unfair deaths because they are random and sometimes spawn at the worst time in the worst place, but most runs, I have no problems avoiding them.

For stage 2, the blades are a nuisance, easily countered with careful movement and some self-heals. You don't need a specific build for it--I've beaten stage 2 on every one of my characters, each with a different build.

The kind of build you need for vMA is the kind of build you need for any kind of solo content--running dungeons solo (or in a group so bad and in need of so much carrying that you're effectively soloing), taking down world bosses solo or duo, running around in Craglorn prior to the OT nerfs, or engaging in solo or small-scale PvP. You need self-healing. You need to be self-sufficient in resource sustain. And you need to be reasonably survivable while also being able to dish out damage. These are not outlandish or exotic requirements, and none of it requires some sort of extraordinary build.

Doctordarkspawn wrote: »

Two. It's a DPS race. That's what it is, a single player DPS race. It's designed as a single player trial, and this does not mesh well with endurance tests. It basicly just ammounts to 'can you kill it before it and the mechanics kill you?' It's why so many Maelstrom setups use twohanded, the burst damage is the best way of accomplishing it.

Oh, and a freebie I've allready stated. Are you a tank or healer? Go *** yourself because your never geting those weapons.

You evidently haven't even tried vMA, then (esp. that comment about 2-handers; dual-wield and bow is what stamina players predominately use in vMA). The DPS-burn strategy is what people do after they've cleared the arena countless times, have every single mob spawn memorized, and can do the arena with their eyes close (figuratively). These are the people making the shiny videos and dominating the leaderboards, but they are few in number.

For most people, the arena is very much an endurance test. And this is especially true for anyone working on their first clear. DPS-burn isn't the only viable strategy. In fact, it's a strategy that is very much non-viable for most players.

There is no "right" build or strategy for vMA, and there are many ways of making it work. Of course, if you're running vMA competitively and shooting for record times, then you will require specific builds and specific strategies. But why are you judging the arena on what a small subset of people do?

Here is a video of someone completing vMA for his first time on a magicka DK, wearing heavy armor and using sword-and-shield on both bars:
As for me, my first time clearing vMA, my front bar was a Restoration Staff, and my back bar was Sword-and-Shield. Also, speaking as a tank (I spend almost as much time as a tank in this game as I do as a DPS; I have 4 different champion-rank characters that I can tank on), my only tank-related complaint about Maelstrom is that the tank weapon is garbage (the restoration staff is pretty useless too). Just because you're a tank doesn't mean you never DPS--what do you do when you solo-quest? Taunt your enemies to death? Any well-rounded tank should have a DPS gearset and should have no problems in vMA.

Maybe you should actually try the content before playing pundit.

Doctordarkspawn wrote: »

I hate it on a fundemental design level and this is not what I want from singleplayer content.

You seem to want solo content that isn't solo content. Tanks and healers are support roles. They make absolutely no sense outside of group content. The objective of any combat game--not just ESO--is to kill the enemy. In group content, the support roles help others kill. In solo content, they have to do the killing themselves. That's just the way it is. If you don't like that--and I personally know many tanks and healers who don't--that's fine, just stick to group content. However, this notion that you should still have group support roles in solo content is utterly nonsensical.

I'll try again when I get the gear sets I want. But yeah, It's just soooo loooooong..... and tedious.

The "traps" on around 2, can be stood in, that's right stood in directly all day long you have some sustain and vigor? You'll be fine, not stam? Np shields on magicka classes, trust me this is a l2p issue for most.[/quote]

Lol at this point I'm so bored with Maelstrom that I make it a goal to dance around those traps and not get hit by a single one. But to be fair, I can see how the environmental mechanics can be frustrating to get used to for those who are new to the arena. I know I still get irritated when I lose track of the flowers on stage 7.
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BNHAHAHAHAA Agreed.