Maestro (guides)

I. Introduction

From Wikipedia:

Quote
Maestro (English: /�ˆmaɪstro�Š/, Italian: [ma�ˆestro]) (from the Italian maestro, meaning "master" or "teacher"[1]) is a title of extreme respect given to a master musician. The term is most commonly used in the context of Western classical music and opera. This is associated with the ubiquitous use of Italian vocabulary for classical music terms. Composers, performers, impresarios, music directors, conductors and music teachers are all frequently given this title.

Bards and Minstrels may be good at their music and merrymaking, but their skills are lacking compared to a Maestro. To those few who have dedicated their whole life to music, they will be given the title of "Maestro".

The Maestro's music is far superior than those of Bards and Minstrels, creating melodies that would change the tides of battle, supporting their allies and punishing their enemies from afar. Should the need arise, he can further help his allies by joining in the fray, showering the opposing forces with a volley of arrows. He can even use his musical expertise to damage and disable foes, leaving them open for your allies to attack.

II. Stats

Strength (STR) - This stat is purely optional. The only function of this stat is to enable you to bring more arrows and potions. With the introduction of Gym Passes, it's best if you leave this to 1 (or use your remaining stat points here).

Agility (AGI) - Determines your FLEE Rate and Attack Speed (ASPD). It also reduces skill delay. It also adds damage to the skill "Severe Rainstorm", although LUK stat gives more.

Vitality (VIT) - Raises your HP and PDEF points according to the number of points you have. Another essential stat for Maestros, since you need to survive to support your allies.

Intelligence (INT) - Raises your SP and MATK / MDEF according to the number of points you have. A must for Maestros, since our SP consumption has greatly increased (120 SP for Severe Rainstorm).

Dexterity (DEX) - The most important stat for long-range classes. DEX increases your ATK, as well as decrease the casting time of your skills. It also improves some of your skills (Bragi's Poem / Magic Strings). Not really needed to be maxed out, but it is somewhat recommended.

Luck (LUK) - Adds Long Range ATK by a fixed rate. Also adds more damage (to Severe Rainstorm) than AGI. Also reduces Curse / Stone Curse duration.

III. Items

Necessities (when Grinding):

Pots (Blues / Whites / Elites, etc.) - Do I really need to explain?
Arrows / Quivers - Duh.
Neck Protection Candy - Needed for the skill, "Despair Song". Can be bought on Comodo (Maestro NPC, near center stage). VERY USEFUL when leveling solo.
Regrettable Tears - Needed for the skill, "At Dead Hill". Can also be bought on Comodo. Useful if you or your partymates ran out of Yggdrasil Leaves.

Luxuries (Grinding):

Fish Slices - Used for power-leveling. I prefer this than bringing along Blue Pots (Elites or not) because it is much lighter than those Potions. Although, this is much more expensive than Elites.
Buff Scrolls - Increase AGI, Blessing Scrolls specifically. I only bring 20 of these scrolls, but not that important (AGI scrolls are somewhat important, enhancing your MS and all) since you can almost one-hit kill every mob in the game with Severe Rainstorm, provided that you have the right equips.
Token of Siegfried / Life Insurance - Your mileage may vary, but I count these items as luxuries. Yes, you might (and you will) get killed sometime while grinding, but if you're really, REALLY good with your character, you wouldn't need this at all. (Not saying I'm good, I'm really crappy thanks to my crappy PC / ISP. Also, I'm poor. >_>)
EXP Manuals - Now this really counts as Luxuries, obviously.

-=-=-=-

Necessities (PvP):

The same as above, but with more Pots. And no Regrettable Tears (HINT: It has no use at all).

Luxuries (PvP):

Token of Siegfried - Yes. I know a certain someone who uses this on PvP. It's obviously a luxury for PvP unless you're REALLY, REALLY mad at that somebody who just handed you your a-, uhmm, hiney on a silver plate.

-=-=-=-

Now for the Gears...

Headgear(s):

Top:

Apple O' Archer - Good if you still need those DEX points, or a gear to close the DEX stat. DEF is horrible though (0 DEF).
Large Baphomet Horns - Great DEF and bonuses. Can greatly enhance your Severe Rainstorm Damage. Makes you look like an idiot though.
Minstrel Song Hat[1] - Decent DEF, good bonuses. It comes slotted so you can put a Card on it (duh). Fits the Maestro clothing motif, and you look badass with it.
Master's Hat[1] - Enhances your Long Range ATK by 7%. A huge bonus if you ask me. Coupled with DEX + 1 and MHP + 100, it's good for grinding / PvPing and is a cheaper alternative for LBH.
Kettle Hat - Gimmick headgear, but is DEADLY when combined with the Berserk Guitar. And with the current Maestro's build (requires high INT), it becomes a Lethal Joke weapon (or headgear, whatever).

Mid:

Glasses[1] / Sunglasses[1] - Obviously useful for one reason: another card slot. Chances of getting these babies are 1:1000000000 or something like that, or through contests, I think?
Robo Eyes - Enhances ATK / Severe Rainstorm damage. 'nuff said.
Sigrun's Wings - Cheaper alternative for Robo Eyes. Though, it's much rarer than Robo Eyes, so go for Robo Eyes instead. This makes you look cool though.

Lower:

Gentleman's Pipe - Added defense for Demi-Human types. Useful in PvP.
Gang Scarf - Enhances ATK (just like Robo Eye). Better than...
Scarlet Rose - ...which only gives DEX + 1 and nothing else. But if you are one of those lucky players who got +4 Scarlet Rose, then Scarlet Rose > Gang Scarf.

Armor:

Formal Suit[1] - The most common Armor with the highest amount of DEF. Unbelievably weighty though (seriously?).
Diabolus Robe[1] - Hard to get but one of the most useful Armors for the Maestro class. Bonuses are awesome especially when combined with the Diabolus Ring.
Orlean's Gown[1] - VERY USEFUL for grinding, especially for Severe Rainstorm.
Glorious Suit - Marc Card and Peco Peco Card in one. Rare, unless you're one of those CnR junkies.
Valkyrie Armor[1] - Somewhat useful, but still a good armor.

Weapons:

Elven Bow - The rarest and most powerful Bow for the Maestro class. Gives the highest damage output when coupled with Elven Arrow.
Orc Archer Bow - The cheaper alternative (and this is also more common) for the latter. Gives the highest damage output when coupled with Steel Arrows (which is more common).
Neo Balista - Rental item, but dishes out Elven Bow-like damage output. Good if you have the cash.
Rudra's Bow - Secondary bow. Useful due to its Heal skill.

Green Whisper[1] - To be implemented. Vital, since it shortens the casting time of Deep Sleep Lullaby by 2 seconds.
Berserk Guitar - Joke weapon by itself, but GODLY when it comes to War of Emperium. Coupled with a Kettle Hat (and other autocast gears), it becomes a deadly weapon.

Shield:

Buckler[1] - Cheapest sturdy shield you can get.
Bradium Buckler[1] - More powerful than the Buckler, and it's becoming increasingly commonplace, what with Bradium Golems being one of the endangered species in game.
Valkyrie Shield[1] - Element resistance is somewhat important too, so keep this at hand.

Shoes:

Diabolus Boots[1] - The ONLY footgear for the Maestro Class. 10% HP, coupled with Green Ferus Card gives you a massive HP boost. Get this one ASAP.
Boots[1] - If you can't afford one of those, use this. Gives decent DEF.
Glorious Shoes - Gives 5% HP, almost half as Diabolus. Rare, unless you are a CnR junkie.
Ball and Chain - No, seriously. This one's for grinding though (usually coupled with Bloodied Shackle ball[).

Garment:

Diabolus Manteau[1] - A massive HP boost is given when this is coupled with Diabolus Boots.
Piece of Angent Skin[1] - Gives decent DEF, both on normal ATKs and Elemental ATKs. Very useful on PvP. (Q: Why is this one called Proxy? I still don't get it.)
Falcon Muffler - Used mainly for grinding.

Accessories:

Bow Thimble[1] - As pointed out by ExS / Chrome, this is the accessory that gives the MOST damage bonus to SR. (Credits to ExS / Chrome, for testing this one)
Orlean's Gloves[1] - Second only to Bow Thimble (in terms of damage). Gives a bit of MDEF too.
Gloves[1] - Cheaper alternative for the latter two.
Diabolus Ring - Only useful if you have the Diabolus Suit, which gives you massive bonuses.
Bloodied Shackle Ball - Used mainly for grinding (coupled with Ball and Chain).

IV. Combat

IV.I. Player vs Monster (PvM)

Solo leveling: If you're skillful enough, you can level anywhere. And by anywhere, I mean it.

With Voice of Siren, you are given a chance to retreat and strike them from afar with your Severe Rainstorm / Arrow Shower or Double Strafe combo. Rinse and repeat.

You can also try Lullaby-ing them, to deal 1.5x damage to the next hit. Although, it is not recommended, as it is only intended for slow moving monsters (not including MvPs).

Always bring 2 types of weapons: Bow and Musical Instrument. Dagger is also nice, Combat Knife or Icepick would be very good.

Party-leveling: Support your party members by ALWAYS casting Idun's and Bragi's. If possible, dedicate the whole leveling session in singing support songs. Make sure that your Lesson skill level is around 5 or more, to let you use Voice of Siren should a mob appear near you.

Do not use Lullaby, unless in urgent situations where you need to escape fast. Should a party member fall into Deep Sleep status, remove the status by using a 3rd Job song (Harmonize, Echo Song, Rush to Windmill).

IV.II Player vs Player (PvP)

Rune Knight - Now made annoying with the addition of Dragon's Breath and improved Spiral Pierce. Again, Pang Voice is your best friend against them (now with the renewed effect of random controls!). Also, Despair Song is very useful to pin them and use the Severe Rainstorm / Double Strafe combo. DO NOT, under any circumstances, BUFF THEM WITH GLOOMY SHYNESS. It's like enticing them to kill you dead (yes, it's redundant).

Royal Guard - Gah, I hate them. SR / DS is not especially useful (they laugh at your meager damage), and Overbrand / Pinpoint Damage can kill you instantly provided that you don't have the right equipments. Pin them with Despair Song and use Tarot Cards until you get the Coma status. Again, DO NOT, under any circumstances, BUFF THEM WITH GLOOMY SHYNESS. Or get raped. Hard.

Mechanic - Haven't PvP-ed with a Mechanic yet, so no comment until I face one. Face them like you would fight a Rune Knight. Pinning them with Despair Song is fine too, since they're Melee classes too. Not recommended with Mado-equipped Mechanics though, as they can just slip away from your "traps" (Front Slide and Back Slide) and then proceed to introduce you to a world of hurt. Spam VoS should they come near you. Turrets can also be affected by VoS so it's best that you spam it like there's no tomorrow. Use Severe Rainstorm if you think you're (now) safe from his / her attack range.

Genetic - Hell's Plant is broken, in the sense that it's hard to notice it, and it's their most damaging skill. AD is the least of your worries, unless players spend P500 worth of load to reset their stats to STR (HAHA!) Apparently, they didn't need to(oh thanks Free Stat reset). Use Voice of Siren so Hell's Plant won't hit you, although they might resort to using Wall of Thorns to restrain you and then spam you with Hell's Plant. Use VoS instantly should you see a Genetic.

I have encountered some Genetics using a bug of some sort (Amistr's Castling and Genetic's Cart Cannon), wherein a Genetic can fire from anywhere as long as the Amistr can see you. Weird. LU! needs to fix this pronto.

Ranger - Wug Bite. 90% of Rangers will definitely use Wug Bite as their first skill. Now that you are immobilized, they are free to spam arrows in your face. Oh wait, you have a bow too right? Despair Song + Severe Rainstorm + Phen <accessory> + Double Strafe is your best friend. Also, use Gloomy Shyness to greatly decrease their ASPD.</accessory>

Trappers or Trap Rangers, on the other hand, are more lethal than the latter build. A stack of Land Mines is enough to take you down. So does their new traps (I only know the effect of the large blue mine, the rest, I dunno lol ¯\(°_o)/¯), as they are made more deadlier. If you see them running away, chances are that they are laying traps for you to step on. Do not follow them, instead, go the other way and set up an ambush. Again, Severe Rainstorm is your friend here. It's also possible / advisable to use Arrow Charge, for them to be pushed back to their traps, triggering it, then blowing them to smithereens.

Maestro / Wanderer - I hate this matchup. It's basically mind games. Will he / she use Voice of Siren? Or directly attack me with Severe Rainstorm? Should I put him / her to sleep? Or should I use Voice of Siren? Either way, it can end in less than a minute or end in an hour or two (VoS spam FTW!)

Do note that Wanderers are more lethal than Maestros. A good Wanderer can use Don't Forget Me / Slow Dance, then switch to Bow and use Severe Rainstorm. If done correctly, you won't escape the barrage of arrows (since you're SLOOOWWWEEEDDD down...) and end up dead.

Maestros, on the other hand, can use Harmonize to remove your bonus stats. This can easily be erased by another 3rd Job buff but it will cost you some time (remember that there is a delay when casting skills / songs / spells), and that 2-3 second gap may cost you a lot.

Guillotine Cross - Cloaking + EDP + Cross Impact = Rape. Frost Joke is now useless since most have their INT up to 100, or have Deadly / Unfrozen armors. Spamming Voice of Siren might help (/lv appearing above their heads). Should you "find" them, pin them with Despair Song, then SR / DS. With luck, you can kill him / her before he recovers.

Shadow Chaser - *presses ESC* Character Select. Yes, I do that sometimes because I LOATHE SHADOW CHASERS WITH A PASSION. Shadow Formation is basically their last resort, and they WILL use it.

Severe Rainstorm !!

SC: Oh noes, I'm dying!

*casts Shadow Formation*

Me: *dies* OMGWTF!

SC: loltroll'd *trollface.jpg*

On a serious note, you can just use Voice of Siren. You can't attack him / her, but he / she wouldn't be able to attack you either. Match ends in a draw!

Not advisable if he / she has a partymate / guildmate. Because you know what'll happen next, and that's just plain

Archbishop - Tarot then run away. Reverberation helps a lot. But they'll just heal the wounds away. So, Tarots are your best friend.

Sura - O hai thar, Mr. / Ms. Su- *Hell's Gate'd* *dies*. Yes, Hell's Gate is BROKEN. BROKEN AS HELL. (ucwutididthar?)

Surprisingly, Dissonance / Unchained Serenade still works. Unless they have Phen <accessory> / Orlean's Gown equipped, you can interrupt their casting time before they even finish casting Guillotine Fist / Hell's Gate.</accessory>

Voice of Siren also works, but only if you can cast it faster than the Sura's killing skill(s)