BEING A SUPPRESSION SPIRITMASTER 101
by Aelwynne Patented Purple Cloak ™
Guildmistress of Malus Peior Pessimus, Midgard Palomides

INTRODUCTION
This guide is written with the assumption that the reader has had experience playing DaoC, perhaps even as a caster. My word is not law, or even the best way to play a suppression Spiritmaster. This is just what has worked for me, Aelwynne. 50 levels and 140,681 realm points after I came to Mid Palo, I'm pretty set in my ways...but they've served me well. Read on, and enjoy.

WHICH RACE?
The more opinions I read on this, I've figured out that it really doesn't matter which race you choose, especially since the advent of spellcrafted armor. Kobolds and Norsemen(and women!) can become Spiritmasters - base class is a Mystic.

Starting Stats	str	con	dex	qui	int	pie	emp	cha
Kobold	50	50	70	70	60	60	60	60
Norseman	70	70	50	50	60	60	60	60

Spiritmaster main specs are Piety / Dexterity / Quickness. Now, quickness ISN'T supposed to affect casting time...but go figure. (I have to get back to you on Aelwynne's starting stats, since i can't remember offhand). Putting 10 points into each is the usual method; you can make up for deficiencies later with armor and jewelry bonuses. If I had a chance to respec her starting stats, I'd go +10 Piety, +15 Dexterity, +5 Constitution.

Being a supp SM means you have to stand IN your target, which = disgusting amounts of damage you may have to take. Norse has higher base con, but Kobolds are able to cast much faster due to higher dex. In the end, it is really up to you. I have yet to play a Kobold caster for any length of time, but I have found that the higher con on my Norsewoman SM allows her to take a few more hits from a mob (or an Alb) before she is in big trouble.

MINDSET
A whole lot of your success as a cloth-wearing caster depends on your mindset, even before we begin discussing strategy. The two are connected, certainly, but being a "caster at heart" ingrains several basic instincts.

[li]Expect to get hit. A Suppresion SM stands in his or her target(s) and uses Point Blank Area of Effect (PBAoE) to nuke the offending parties into oblivion. Most caster classes, - light Enchanters/Eldritches, darkness Spiritmasters, Runemasters, Wizards, Theurgists, etc. - make it their goal to stand as far away from the target as possible. This allows them to be as far from aggro range as possible, and to inflict the most damage before the target decides to charge them. A supp SM doesn't have that luxury. You can't be taught when to stay and when to sprint away and blast (or just keep sprinting) until you've died a few times trying all of the above. Eventually, you will get a feel for when it is a good idea to stick around and try that last QuickCast on a cambion, or when to run like heck, leave your pet, and just keep going.

[li]Learn your range. PBAoE has a range usefully described as "300." That is not a very helpful explanation of how far it extends. Aelwynne is able to wield her PBAoE less like a sledgehammer, mezz-breaking, CC nightmare - with more finesse controlling the razor edge of the red tornado ; ) I play panned back as far as possible, and often spin in a circle while casting to a) watch my back b) make sure I don't clip the edge of another mob with my cast. If you're in RvR, don't bother spinning unless you are very comfortable with your surroundings - when you start running, you want to be able to know where you are going. But on the same token, be careful who you might clip with the edge of your PBAoE - tanks will love you and soon learn to run enemies stuck on them right into it. Test your range on a field of greys - the safest possible place to see what you hit and what you don't.

[li]Keep your shields up. I cannot stress how important this is. At level 50, the AF buff is +250...and on cloth, that is a miracle. The AF buff and melee absorption keep you from being one-shotted by a like-level enemy / mob. Keep in mind, a wizard bolt won't be affected by your cloth; if you see one coming, chances are it is too late.

And always, always, always recast Bladeturn as soon as possible after it goes down!! Having a stealther miss because he hits bladeturn will save your life. It may not happen a majority of the time, but when it does, those are some sweet realm points to be had.

[li]You are just as important as the other members of the group. (more on this below) In a group, speak up and make sure you get acuity, dex/quick, and con buffs, in that order. If possible, ask the healer for a purity...PBAoE uses much less mana than single-target DD, but you don't want to have to burn MCL more than necessary. Don't let them tell you to drop your pet unless you absolutely trust your company. Put it on passive, and leave it on follow. You never know when you need a backup tank. If there are enough tanks to go around, ask for a warrior or thane to guard you - having them block a blow while you are casting will save you from being interrupted.

[li]Your pet may save your life. Even if you absolutely trust your company, the advent of pet intercept is a lifesaver. Why? Your spirit champ may just be following you around in DF when you see a stealther pop in front of you. Amazingly enough, you've survived a perf for 600 (+125) and are reeling but haven't been stabbed again. On the other hand, your pet is taking it out on said stealthier because it intercepted the blow. Even if he does get a few more shots off, or you get attacked by a plain melee class/mob, having your pet take a blow for you gives you the chance to either cast or sprint away.

SPECIAL ABILITIES
Aside from the usual caster abilities (direct damage, bladeturn, root, etc.), a Spiritmaster has several extra bonuses.

[li]Mezz. The mezz is part of the Spirit Suppression spec line, so as a supp SM you have a fairly long-lasting and powerful one. Runemasters and Bonedancers are nicely equipped with the root as part of the base Suppression line, but they do not have the luxury of mezzing their targets. It's equally nice to mezz an Alb or Hib and run off as it is to take care of unwanted adds while hunting. The level 50 mezz lasts for 1 minute 40 seconds, whereas the level 40 mezz lasts for 1 minute 7 seconds. However, it is up to you whether to spec 49 in Suppression for the last PBAoE and skip the 50 mezz.

[li]Purge. Like Healers, you have the ability to purge realmmates who have been mezzed by an enemy realm. Unfortunately, this is not the same Purge featured as a Realm Ability. Your Purge will only de-mesmerize the target, as opposed to the RA which dispels all negative effects.

[li]Lifetap. Bonedancers also have access to this ability. Lifetap is part of the Spirit Dimming spec line, so you must spec in Darkness to have access to it. Since you are mainly a suppression SM, chances are your Darkness ability will be low. In this case, your lifetap will not be very strong...but it is very convenient to heal yourself using greys. At level 50, I can lifetap about 500 hitpoints off demoniace familiars and lilispawn in Darkness Falls. Once you've tapped your life back, it's easy to tell your pet to finish off the mob while you rest. In warning, lifetap costs little mana but eats up your endurance. I don't recommend using this if you are in imminent danger and may need to sprint away.

[li]Lifetransfer. Often referred to as a "ghetto heal" by your realmmates. This ability in the Spirit Suppression spec line allows you to transfer some of your hitpoints to a realmmate or a pet. It will heal your target for twice as many hitpoints as it costs you. For example, you may see "You heal _____ for 482 hitpoints." You have only given up 241 hitpoints to do so. I find it costs less mana when soloing to lifetransfer to my pet and lifetap my hits back from a convenient green or grey mob. In group or RvR, use this ability with caution. As casters have laughably low hitpoints, it is often wise to not do anything that will cause you to be at lower than full health. However, throwing a heal on a groupmate when healers / shamans are out of mana or can't heal everyone fast enough should be done at your jurisdiction. Be careful of over healing, or the mob may decide to aggro on you, who now have less than full health.

Choose a pet with the weapon most suited to your task. If you are farming plated fiends (or paladins) in Darkness Falls, a hammer-bearing pet would receive the largest bonus. On the other hand, choose one with axe or sword for things such as spiders and soultorns. Online in various places are charts mapping out the vulnerabilities and resists against various types of weaponry between the realms...I'd suggest familiarizing yourself with these.

Logic would tell you to choose a dwarven pet because dwarves have the most base con, right? However, even though your pet has an outrageous amount of hitpoints compared to you, the race does not matter. I prefer the troll or kobold female as my hunting companion, but that is only because I feel safer with the troll and kobolds remind me of my favorite friends.

Again, pets being granted the ability to intercept seems to be a good bonus for any excursions, be they questing or RvR. It is up to you to develop your style of wielding the pet - keep it close to intercept while running in Emain or sending it off to interrupt casters and bowmen. In the heat of battle, your instincts will tell you what makes you the most comfortable.

STRATEGY
Solo Hunting

[li]In general, you should be able to hunt orange con mobs solo and always be able to handle anything yellow and under. Be careful with the orange mobs if they pop in red / orange varieties; as a supp SM I am rarely able to handle a red mob without extra buffs on myself and my pet.
[li]As I spent most of my time hunting in Darkness Falls, I have seldom used a purely pet pull unless I am farming (which I'll get into later). I tend to utilize what my roommate (50 Enchantress Laszel of Guinevere) wryly named "the suicide pull." Thankfully as a Norsewoman, I have much less of a chance of dying this way than her Lurikeen does...
[li]Suicide Pull (unlike a Shadowblade, supp SMs tend to survive these)

[li]Pick a mob and stand in a relatively safe place, just out of aggro range.
[li]Pull using debuff spells. When at all possible I use all 3 of my single target debuffs, especially on an orange mob. The order I debuff is:
strength - base suppression skill
level 45 Annihilate Strength: -46 STR
fervor / zeal - spec spirit suppression skill
level 48 Dissipate Zeal: -19 QUI
darkness - base darkness skill
level 36 Veil of Darkness: -38 DEX
I don't recommend using the AE debuff while soloing unless you are farming; sometimes it has the nasty side effect of accidentally aggroing another mob.
[li]As soon as the mob is out of aggro range of other mobs, set your pet on it. The mob may take a swipe at you before your pet gets aggro...if this happens, you'll usually be protected by bladeturn for the first hit. If your pet doesn't pick it up by the second hit, it's time for you to QC mezz and RUN.
[li]If you have any skill in Spirit Enhancement (summoning spec line), cast a focus shield or one minute damage reflec on your pet. Sure, it isn't much...but it's better than nothing.
[li]If at all possible, do not heal your pet during the fight. A darkness or summoning SM can get away with that because they do not have to stand on the target to kill. Healing the pet will cause the mob to aggro on you as soon as you run in to PBAoE.
[li]Wait until the mob is at ¾ life or your pet is dangerously close to dying. Then move until you are directly underneath or on top of the mob.
[li]As soon as you are in position, spam the PBAoE button. Chances are, you will be able to get off two casts before you have to Quick Cast a last nuke. If the mob isn't dead yet, sprint away and use the Darkness direct damage on it. Being specced a bit in darkness, you might be able to lifetap it, but no guarantees.
[li]Mob dies. Loot up, sit down, and med up for the next fight.

[li]Pet Pull

[li]Pick a mob and stand out of aggro range.
[li]Tell your pet to attack. As soon as your pet has aggro, debuff the heck out of the mob.
[li]Cast focus or damage reflec shield.
[li]Put pet on passive to bring the mob closer. Make sure you will have room to PBAoE a single target.
[li]Repeat above steps after you are ready to nuke.

Group Hunting

[li]Buffs. Again, be certain to ask for purity, acuity, dex, and con buffs. If you're lucky enough to have both a healer and a shammy with you, do your best to be loaded up. It's happened to me that I get into a group and the healer/shammy is out of conc. I usually politely request just purity or acuity if that is the case.

[li]Guard. Inform the group that you are a suppression SM. Ask them to pile the mobs you are hunting. Check to see if you have a warrior or a thane grouped, and ask if they will put guard on you. If they don't want to, don't argue. Just point out after you get interrupted during the first pull that having guard on you will greatly speed up the XPing. Chances are, the tanks and the healers will come to an agreement on that...

[li]The Pull. If you are in a full group, you know very well that the mobs may come three at a time. As a supp SM, you have a powerful root and mezz, since both are in the suppression skill line. It's up to you if you want to volunteer to root pull, although when I do I usually cast mezz as backup for the root.


[li]After mobs have been pulled, back out of range when they charge. Use your pet to peel off yourself and healers/shammies. In a good group, you won't need your pet as more than a backup tank and for intercept functions.
[li]If you like, use your debuffs. Area debuff takes more mana than a single target, but at level 43 Suppression you receive Emasculate Strength: -66 STR/CON area debuff. Not too shabby.
[li]Wait until mobs are solidly aggro'd on tanks / your pet. It takes time playing the class to know when this is; I can't give you an exact level of health to watch for. Sometimes I run in because the tanks are dying, or the mobs have started attacking the healer. Sometimes the tanks are doing so well I run in when the mobs are at half life. You need to learn your abilities from grouping.
[li]Run in, and stand where you will do the most damage. If your group is doing well and piles the mobs correctly, all you need to do is move to the middle of the heap. If not, it is better to stand in one mob at a time (usually the one of highest con / most health) and nuke. You will be much more effective that way than trying to nuke 3 mobs standing at the edges of PBAoE range.
[li]If you have a tank guarding you, it helps to stand within range of his or her guard. If it's a friend ( /wave GL) they know to follow you and pull their mob into your aoe.
[li]Watch mobs die. Recast bladeturn if it's gone down, loot up, and wait for the next pull.

Farming

[li]By farming, I mean killing disgusting amounts of mobs all at once, and gleefully looting for hours on end.
[li]The Mobs. In general, I farm for straight cash or DF seals, not salvageable drops. Thus, I usually pick mobs that are easy to kill with one or two nukes, and that drop a decent amount of cash. At 50, I like to camp the upper rocots, necyomancers, and Lecherous Gress room in DF. All of these mobs are green/blue to me, which means I can take them out with little effort.
[li]/Farm.

[li]Pick a spot close enough that you can target and tell your pet to attack all the mobs without moving. This is in case you decide to use a focus shield. Because Aelwynne is specced 14 Summoning, she has both the focus shield and the one minute damage reflec shield available.
[li]Target the nearest mob and tell your pet to attack. Cast your focus shield or damage reflec shield. As soon as you do, target the next mob.
[li]Wait for pet to hit the first mob, then set it on the second mob.
[li]Repeat until you have enough mobs to worry about the pet's health.
[li]If you have pulled the full room, you do not need to call your pet passive. It is up to you to gauge when your pet cannot take any more beating, and when your PBAoE will be most effective.
[li]If you haven't pulled the full room (and don't want to), call your pet passive. Set it back to defensive when it is right in front of you.
[li]Run in, stand on your pet, and spam PBAoE. QuickCast if need be, especially if you misjudge and your pet dies.
[li]Recast bladeturn, heal your pet, and loot up.

Of late I have discovered that casting my AE debuff is a wonderful way to interrupt casters and archers, as well as slow down fleeing casters in lieu of a speed snare. Again, -66 STR/CON can be remarkably savage on occasion, allowing you / your pet to catch up and net a few more realm points.

A certain paranoia will develop after the first few times a stealthier jumps you from out of nowhere. If standing in one place for any length of time (even under cover with SBs / Hunters watching your back) or when an area is suspiciously empty, I tend to fire off a PBAoE mezz. Part of the Spirit Dimming line, you need to specialize in Darkness to access it - the first one is at 2 in Darkness. Most of the time it won't stick, since your skill in Darkness is low; however, seeing a "______ resists the effect" will alert you that you have unwanted company.

My caution again to use your abilities with care. You'll know with some experience when it's time to cut loose with PBAoE and pray you kill the Albs/Hibs before they get to you, and when it's time to hit sprint and run for cover.

REALM ABILITIES
As I am only Realm Rank 3 at the moment, I am not the best source for information on this subject. However, I will relate what in my experience has worked, both personally and from observation. The brief discussions below by no means cover all of the available RAs for a Spiritmaster, but highlight a few that I have either possessed or believe to be worth investing in. In the end, it is best for you to take a look at the Realm Ability charts in various places online and see what you think is best.

[li]Mystic Crystal Lore. Otherwise known as MCL. Every caster needs this out of combat power heal on a 5 minute timer. It gives a base of 30% power, but sometimes will heal you for over 50%. Only drawback is that it can't be used if you or your pet is in combat. It's up to you if you want to spend the 6 Realm Skill Points to obtain MCL II; I have heard varying reports of its effectiveness. For me, MCL I and a nice supply of power heal potions combined with the occasional purity from a healer works fine for me.

[li]Augmented Acuity. Otherwise known as Aug Acuity. Adds to your base casting stat of Piety +6 with each level you obtain. Certain levels of Aug Acuity are a prerequisite of other Realm Abilities.

[li]Augmented Dexterity. Otherwise known as Aug Dex. Adds to your base dexterity by +6 per level. I have yet to try this out, but I imagine for the Norse caster it is a good thing to have.

[li]Serenity. A nice bonus, Serenity causes your power to regenerate faster than normal. It's a passive ability, so it is always in action throughout your play time. Prerequisite is Augmented Acuity 2, so you won't be getting Serenity right away.

[li]Mastery of Concentration. Otherwise known as MoC. Active ability and usable every 30 minutes, MoC allows you to cast uninterrupted for 15 seconds. Prerequisite is Augmented Acuity 3, MoC also costs 14 Realm Skill Points. Not cheap...but a blessing for those no-win situations in PvE and RvR when you know you're going down and would like to take the enemy with you first.

[li]Wild Power. Otherwise known as WP. Passive ability that increases your chance to critical hit with DD spells by 5% per level of WP. Prerequisite is Augmented Acuity 2 (same as for Serenity), but Wild Power is another useful bonus for RvR and PvE.

[li]Long Wind. Otherwise known as LW. Passive ability that allows you to sprint longer than normal. You will lose endurance at a slower pace while sprinting, but LW does not cause your end to regenerate while sprinting. Level 1 costs one Realm Skill point.

[li]Regeneration. Passive ability that regenerates your hitpoints faster than normal. As I only invested in level 1 of this ability for a short time, I cannot truly attest to its usefulness for a caster.

When I got to 20, I respecced all of my Darkness back into Suppression, but by 25 had specced some in Darkness again. The first SM I had made on Nimue was Darkness, and I liked the ability to lifetap. At 40 I respecced all of my Summoning back into Suppression, and was able to put points back into Summoning using my mini-dings.

Don't do something that confusing. I prefer to keep Suppression at one below level and use the additional points to augment my nuking abilities with a few pet spells and lifetaps. Not to mention that speccing a little in Darkness will cause your single-target base Darkness nuke to hit for more than if you were full Suppression.

Aelwynne's 50 spec is 49 Suppression, 17 Darkness, 14 Summoning. I wasted a few spec points doing that, but I do not feel extremely disadvantaged for doing so. Using the character builder programs available online is your best bet - you can see all of the possibilities of various spec lines before actually investing the points on your character. Because I have specced in two secondary lines, my lifetap is decent for use on mobs while hunting, and to clean up my own health after a RvR battle in DF. My pet is stronger than that of most suppression SMs so I have less trouble while farming and the use of the one minute damage reflec spell.

FINAL COMMENTS
In the end it's your character and your choice to do what works best for you. I feel that there is no way to make a Spiritmaster "wrong" because of the advantages of both Darkness and Suppression as your primary line.

Good luck, happy Alb-ganking, and feel free to direct any questions or other feedback to PatentedPurpleCloak@juno.com or message me on Yahoo! as ciarellestormblade.