Question - 6 man (3 x 2 players) group setup help

[Trinost]

Hello everyone,

This is my first time boxing more than 2 toons (truebox servers). I always played bard or warrior main with bard box. My wife during that time played shm only. Wife and I saw frostreaver and decided we would both try to 3 box manually. Currently, we've been practicing with virtual desktop switching as we have 2 monitors and then switch to 2nd desktop for 3rd account. We aren't familiar with any software and hard to find much visual info online showcasing the products. We found and was thinking about Isboxer as we are hoping to not get hit with any ban waves. I read if used MQ2 high chance of getting the hammer and we don't want that. We did find this youtube link, but friend told me that it could be classified as a "hack" tool, because it does keyboard inputs? I am not familiar enough to know.

She wants to give tanking a try she is planning on playing all 3 tanks in 3 different group set ups since more toons = more exp on frost. She is familiar with Shm, and is okay with doing Clr until shm gets a bigger tool set (rez/better heals). So I decided I'll do support and dps. I choose the mage, necro, bard. I am happy to pull with the bard. I figured the mage and necro would be easy toons to use to tab/click to and start dpsing while returning to pulling. I'm not certain how well melee would work or if they would be more ideal. I did do some research and will share what I found with AI below.

We plan to raid with as well in a couple of guilds. Our plan is to put each toon into one of 3 guilds so our boxes are well geared as mains as long as we are able to do this. This way they can preform exceptionally well in our group content and be more forgiving to our mistakes.

Our main goals in the game are to raid with guilds and farm for the trade skill items per each expansion as it becomes available to make obtaining the Artisan's Prize more manageable for which ever toons we decide are our two mains in our group. I don't think we can handle doing it 6 times haha. We also want to do quests/missions when they become available. Collections and achievements are also on our radar to do when able. We are just looking to have a fun time doing things together and exploring what everquest is like classic to live as a couple.

We want to make sure we have a solid 6 toon group to do these goals from start to finish. The reason I word it this way is we heard past PoR classes have a lot of changes compared to vanilla to PoR. As I said our goal is the total ride. However, there really isn't a lot of information online for PoR to live for all classes for us to make educated choices. If there is we haven't been able to find them.

This is what we think are good groups based on auras with the melee group and being functional. We aren't apposed to switching anything out. I was originally thinking mage for the last slot for the melee group. However, AI suggested the druid for the last spot as we weren't sure what to fit in there. Not quite sure why though, besides that AI couldn't accept that we were going to use the shm only for heals and it didn't think that shm's could do that. It kept trying to push clr for heals/rez until I told it not to advise clr in the suggestion. I'm not super confident with AI's suggestions, but it can read more forums faster than I can. I'd love some people with real experience to advice us.

What we "think" might be good choices

Caster grp (War, Shm, Clr, Mage, Necro, Bard) for the launch then dropping clr for wizard when shm gets rez.
or
Melee grp (War, Shm, Clr, Rogue, Bard, Monk/Ranger?(not sure)), for the launch then dropping clr for Bst when shm gets rez.

I like the idea of monk for simplicity, aura, and good dps however, not sure, but appears from what I read compared to rogue and bard in later game their dps diminishes a good amount.

I have heard some good things about rangers. I've just never had anyone go into detail with me about them to know if better than rogue or monk. I also don't know if they bring utility that the bard doesn't already.

I read rogues really become melee powerhouses so I feel good about that. I didn't think about doing multiples of rogues for some alliance thing I read about. Only because that doesn't seem practical for group grinding. As a result I was thinking about adding different auras and bonuses by having different classes for a more well rounded group.

Only reason didn't choose zerk is for 2 reasons:
1) heard not really good until past 85+ and have tons of AAs
2) appears like might need a ton of buttons to press unlike other classes to do decent dmg (more effort for same or slightly better dps).


If you are experienced in 6 boxing and could offer some advice for classic to live or especially for PoR to live so we can gain some insight and improvements in our group build we would greatly appreciate all your efforts. Please explain it to us like we're stupid on the why's/how's. We are still semi new to a ton of things. THANK YOU!

 

[reedreddington]

First and foremost, with Frostreaver not being a truebox server you can do away with the complicated junk of virtual desktops. Just load everything on the same computer/desktop so that ISBoxer can work seamless between accounts. If you want to box without MQ then ISBoxer has been deemed a "safe" grey area solution 3rd party software. Anything that ISBoxer does can also be accomplished by a hardware solution (no automation, simply button presses). I previously ran ISBoxer before MQ and never had any actions against my accounts until i ran MQ.

My advise for using ISBoxer is set it up so that each hotbutton 1-12 does a specific thing. As ISBoxer allows broadcasting of hotbuttons. I always chose things that every toon needed to do: Assist and do pre-engage things. Mash type things. DoTs. Heals. Ect ect. You can also set it up so that ALT or CTRL + 1-12 button presses will trigger as well. Making it so you can cast the same spell slot from any toon. It is all very simple once you get used to setting it up. You can change these things as you level. The only real downside of ISBoxer is /follow just sucks. MQ has QOL features that makes navigation so much easier, but you gain the risk with running MQ.

As far as group composition, go with what you WANT to play. If you do not want to play Zerk than don't. If you know a class already - that is always a bonus and makes setting things up easier. I find that my zerk is pretty much a mash machine. I have almost all the skills/aas set to 2-3 hotbuttons and just mash along with my Warrior. I also ran a very successful SK/SHM/NEC setup and had some very complex macro hotbuttons set up to maximize DPS facilitated by my ISBoxer setup. There are ways to set it up to your play style.

 

[Valdemar]

Couple of points to consider. It'll be 96 weeks before "The Serpent's Spine" unlocks when you'll get access to defiant armors. Perhaps you'll be beyond them by that point, but I doubt it. It's been awhile, but I don't remember any quest armors that would overmatch a full set of Elegant Defiant in the expansions up to that time. Feel free to correct me on this point. However, if you want to raid with just 6 characters, there will be situations where your gear will not allow your group to simple zerg their way to victory. So therefore, you should have the capability to perform DoT camps - be it either root/DoT or snare/DoT/kite. It is possible to build a melee group that can do this if you choose a melee-oriented group. To that end, I recommend;

SK, BRD, SHM, DRU, RNG, + melee of your choice.

I recommend the DRU to replace the CLR for more than just DoTs. They are extremely versatile (buff, heal, DoT, nuke) and can port you to glory. Later, you can drop the DRU in favor of a BST or another melee. I'd recommend keeping the RNG, but I understand that it's a matter of preference as to whether you want more support (RNG) or more DPS (a melee substitute).

If you choose a caster group, then I'd recommend the following;

SK, SHM, DRU, ENC, MAG, NEC.

5 of 6 can DoT, you've got snare, root, and ports. Later, you can drop the SHM and add a WIZ, or whatever you like. Again, I recommend dropping the CLR for a DRU. DRUs make better healers for caster groups in the long run and they can act as a caster themselves.

Hope this was helpful.

 

[Valdemar]

First and foremost, with Frostreaver not being a truebox server you can do away with the complicated junk of virtual desktops. Just load everything on the same computer/desktop so that ISBoxer can work seamless between accounts. If you want to box without MQ then ISBoxer has been deemed a "safe" grey area solution 3rd party software. Anything that ISBoxer does can also be accomplished by a hardware solution (no automation, simply button presses). I previously ran ISBoxer before MQ and never had any actions against my accounts until i ran MQ.

My advise for using ISBoxer is set it up so that each hotbutton 1-12 does a specific thing. As ISBoxer allows broadcasting of hotbuttons. I always chose things that every toon needed to do: Assist and do pre-engage things. Mash type things. DoTs. Heals. Ect ect. You can also set it up so that ALT or CTRL + 1-12 button presses will trigger as well. Making it so you can cast the same spell slot from any toon. It is all very simple once you get used to setting it up. You can change these things as you level. The only real downside of ISBoxer is /follow just sucks. MQ has QOL features that makes navigation so much easier, but you gain the risk with running MQ.

As far as group composition, go with what you WANT to play. If you do not want to play Zerk than don't. If you know a class already - that is always a bonus and makes setting things up easier. I find that my zerk is pretty much a mash machine. I have almost all the skills/aas set to 2-3 hotbuttons and just mash along with my Warrior. I also ran a very successful SK/SHM/NEC setup and had some very complex macro hotbuttons set up to maximize DPS facilitated by my ISBoxer setup. There are ways to set it up to your play style.

Excellent advice.

 

[Trevocalpse]

Monk far out performs rogue until at LEAST lvl 95. Its not particularly close most of the way. Zerker comes into their own around 75+, but will outdps a rogue around 65-70 when they get their 2.0.

Melee crew is (for BiS for most of the lvl 1-100 run) Tank of choice, whatever tank your wife wants to play. Warrior will be solid dps for a good chunk of the run, but will lag on aggro. SK is the "usual" go-to for it being just op for group tanking/ect forever, and then it gets the 2.0 and just lol. Also becomes a top dps class 85+. Paladin is a choice. Its not as gifted (in general) for awhile, but it sets you apart from other groups, can backup heal/rez, and gives you a reason to try the random undead camp of the expansion for xp.

As far as dps for a melee-based crew.. Monk is THE top dps class till 65 in almost every expansion/raid/scenario. It then fights with zerker for the melee-centered spot till around 80, and then zerker takes over. Its not currently close either. I dont know the content post VoA raid/dps wise yet, but as a zerker main the only melee dps that comes close/fights with me on burns is SK right now at 95. Rogues are solid-enough dps, can help recover from a wipe by sneak/hiding down to the camp and dragging corpses if need be. Now, for a manual-box? I wouldnt recommend as having to position them specifically sounds like a pain in the ass. Just use a monk over them. Bstlord is essential for a melee crew, but i know they arent exactly amazing till 65-70+ as well, and JUST get group fero starting 90+..

MY recommended melee crew is: Tankofchoice-shaman-bard-monk-zerker-bstlord. Can swap bstlord for cleric until a later expansion if need be. Could honestly swap the zerker for a 2nd monk till around the same time, but i dont know how a zerker will perform in these earlier expansions b4 they originally came out.


Caster crew is much the same. Ideal group is going to be different based on the expansion/era/level. For example, druid becomes far more of a caster healer/adps 70+ so a group of tankofchoice-druid-bard-chanter and any combo of mage/wiz/necro although necro doesnt do the greatest in groups just due to how DoT's work.

BUT, early game included, and with you being willing to swap classes out.. id rec: Tankofchoice-cleric-bard-chanter-mage-wiz. Pre-omens, the chanter player will be the biggest dps in the group thanks to Charm if that person can handle the multitasking.

 

[Rushdown]

Hello everyone,

This is my first time boxing more than 2 toons (truebox servers). I always played bard or warrior main with bard box. My wife during that time played shm only. Wife and I saw frostreaver and decided we would both try to 3 box manually. Currently, we've been practicing with virtual desktop switching as we have 2 monitors and then switch to 2nd desktop for 3rd account. We aren't familiar with any software and hard to find much visual info online showcasing the products. We found and was thinking about Isboxer as we are hoping to not get hit with any ban waves. I read if used MQ2 high chance of getting the hammer and we don't want that. We did find this youtube link, but friend told me that it could be classified as a "hack" tool, because it does keyboard inputs? I am not familiar enough to know.

She wants to give tanking a try she is planning on playing all 3 tanks in 3 different group set ups since more toons = more exp on frost. She is familiar with Shm, and is okay with doing Clr until shm gets a bigger tool set (rez/better heals). So I decided I'll do support and dps. I choose the mage, necro, bard. I am happy to pull with the bard. I figured the mage and necro would be easy toons to use to tab/click to and start dpsing while returning to pulling. I'm not certain how well melee would work or if they would be more ideal. I did do some research and will share what I found with AI below.

We plan to raid with as well in a couple of guilds. Our plan is to put each toon into one of 3 guilds so our boxes are well geared as mains as long as we are able to do this. This way they can preform exceptionally well in our group content and be more forgiving to our mistakes.

Our main goals in the game are to raid with guilds and farm for the trade skill items per each expansion as it becomes available to make obtaining the Artisan's Prize more manageable for which ever toons we decide are our two mains in our group. I don't think we can handle doing it 6 times haha. We also want to do quests/missions when they become available. Collections and achievements are also on our radar to do when able. We are just looking to have a fun time doing things together and exploring what everquest is like classic to live as a couple.

We want to make sure we have a solid 6 toon group to do these goals from start to finish. The reason I word it this way is we heard past PoR classes have a lot of changes compared to vanilla to PoR. As I said our goal is the total ride. However, there really isn't a lot of information online for PoR to live for all classes for us to make educated choices. If there is we haven't been able to find them.

This is what we think are good groups based on auras with the melee group and being functional. We aren't apposed to switching anything out. I was originally thinking mage for the last slot for the melee group. However, AI suggested the druid for the last spot as we weren't sure what to fit in there. Not quite sure why though, besides that AI couldn't accept that we were going to use the shm only for heals and it didn't think that shm's could do that. It kept trying to push clr for heals/rez until I told it not to advise clr in the suggestion. I'm not super confident with AI's suggestions, but it can read more forums faster than I can. I'd love some people with real experience to advice us.

What we "think" might be good choices

Caster grp (War, Shm, Clr, Mage, Necro, Bard) for the launch then dropping clr for wizard when shm gets rez.
or
Melee grp (War, Shm, Clr, Rogue, Bard, Monk/Ranger?(not sure)), for the launch then dropping clr for Bst when shm gets rez.

I like the idea of monk for simplicity, aura, and good dps however, not sure, but appears from what I read compared to rogue and bard in later game their dps diminishes a good amount.

I have heard some good things about rangers. I've just never had anyone go into detail with me about them to know if better than rogue or monk. I also don't know if they bring utility that the bard doesn't already.

I read rogues really become melee powerhouses so I feel good about that. I didn't think about doing multiples of rogues for some alliance thing I read about. Only because that doesn't seem practical for group grinding. As a result I was thinking about adding different auras and bonuses by having different classes for a more well rounded group.

Only reason didn't choose zerk is for 2 reasons:
1) heard not really good until past 85+ and have tons of AAs
2) appears like might need a ton of buttons to press unlike other classes to do decent dmg (more effort for same or slightly better dps).


If you are experienced in 6 boxing and could offer some advice for classic to live or especially for PoR to live so we can gain some insight and improvements in our group build we would greatly appreciate all your efforts. Please explain it to us like we're stupid on the why's/how's. We are still semi new to a ton of things. THANK

Hello everyone,

This is my first time boxing more than 2 toons (truebox servers). I always played bard or warrior main with bard box. My wife during that time played shm only. Wife and I saw frostreaver and decided we would both try to 3 box manually. Currently, we've been practicing with virtual desktop switching as we have 2 monitors and then switch to 2nd desktop for 3rd account. We aren't familiar with any software and hard to find much visual info online showcasing the products. We found and was thinking about Isboxer as we are hoping to not get hit with any ban waves. I read if used MQ2 high chance of getting the hammer and we don't want that. We did find this youtube link, but friend told me that it could be classified as a "hack" tool, because it does keyboard inputs? I am not familiar enough to know.

She wants to give tanking a try she is planning on playing all 3 tanks in 3 different group set ups since more toons = more exp on frost. She is familiar with Shm, and is okay with doing Clr until shm gets a bigger tool set (rez/better heals). So I decided I'll do support and dps. I choose the mage, necro, bard. I am happy to pull with the bard. I figured the mage and necro would be easy toons to use to tab/click to and start dpsing while returning to pulling. I'm not certain how well melee would work or if they would be more ideal. I did do some research and will share what I found with AI below.

We plan to raid with as well in a couple of guilds. Our plan is to put each toon into one of 3 guilds so our boxes are well geared as mains as long as we are able to do this. This way they can preform exceptionally well in our group content and be more forgiving to our mistakes.

Our main goals in the game are to raid with guilds and farm for the trade skill items per each expansion as it becomes available to make obtaining the Artisan's Prize more manageable for which ever toons we decide are our two mains in our group. I don't think we can handle doing it 6 times haha. We also want to do quests/missions when they become available. Collections and achievements are also on our radar to do when able. We are just looking to have a fun time doing things together and exploring what everquest is like classic to live as a couple.

We want to make sure we have a solid 6 toon group to do these goals from start to finish. The reason I word it this way is we heard past PoR classes have a lot of changes compared to vanilla to PoR. As I said our goal is the total ride. However, there really isn't a lot of information online for PoR to live for all classes for us to make educated choices. If there is we haven't been able to find them.

This is what we think are good groups based on auras with the melee group and being functional. We aren't apposed to switching anything out. I was originally thinking mage for the last slot for the melee group. However, AI suggested the druid for the last spot as we weren't sure what to fit in there. Not quite sure why though, besides that AI couldn't accept that we were going to use the shm only for heals and it didn't think that shm's could do that. It kept trying to push clr for heals/rez until I told it not to advise clr in the suggestion. I'm not super confident with AI's suggestions, but it can read more forums faster than I can. I'd love some people with real experience to advice us.

What we "think" might be good choices

Caster grp (War, Shm, Clr, Mage, Necro, Bard) for the launch then dropping clr for wizard when shm gets rez.
or
Melee grp (War, Shm, Clr, Rogue, Bard, Monk/Ranger?(not sure)), for the launch then dropping clr for Bst when shm gets rez.

I like the idea of monk for simplicity, aura, and good dps however, not sure, but appears from what I read compared to rogue and bard in later game their dps diminishes a good amount.

I have heard some good things about rangers. I've just never had anyone go into detail with me about them to know if better than rogue or monk. I also don't know if they bring utility that the bard doesn't already.

I read rogues really become melee powerhouses so I feel good about that. I didn't think about doing multiples of rogues for some alliance thing I read about. Only because that doesn't seem practical for group grinding. As a result I was thinking about adding different auras and bonuses by having different classes for a more well rounded group.

Only reason didn't choose zerk is for 2 reasons:
1) heard not really good until past 85+ and have tons of AAs
2) appears like might need a ton of buttons to press unlike other classes to do decent dmg (more effort for same or slightly better dps).


If you are experienced in 6 boxing and could offer some advice for classic to live or especially for PoR to live so we can gain some insight and improvements in our group build we would greatly appreciate all your efforts. Please explain it to us like we're stupid on the why's/how's. We are still semi new to a ton of things. THANK YOU!

Depends what your goals are for the tank if only group content sk if your looking to small man raid warrior. If automated go melee group if not I’d go caster. Also joining 3 guilds and raiding with them all is insane put your tank in a guild to get geared and buy your Alts pieces if this is frostreaver gear is gonna drop like crazy and prices will go down. Don’t burn yourself out.

 

[aspire]

BST class won't be available for 24 weeks and BER class won't unlock for 64 weeks.

BST and BER are available at launch on Frostreaver.

 

[Valdemar]

BST and BER are available at launch on Frostreaver.

Thanks! Good to know. I should have read the notes more carefully. I assumed that since it's TLP, those classes would unlock later/

 

[reedreddington]

I honestly prefer boxing caster types with ISBoxer. Allows me to pull to a camp and whatever position they are in they just do the things they need to... Moving toons into position is a thing that you can learn to do. I would usually just have them on /follow on the tank and just scootch onto the backside of the mob and turn around and my followers would mostly do their job and be in correct backside position. Have a follow hotkey ready at all times to reset positions. If you are only running 3 toons each then non active window lag isn't as bad and they will mostly stick with you.

 

[Trinost]

Thank you everyone for these very helpful comments. I have enjoyed reading and look forward to apply them with what knowledge I've found and that has been shared. Please, if anyone else has some useful knowledge or comments that could be helpful I urge you to share it. It is going to help me and I have a feeling it could help many others as well.