best race for shaman?

[NirrtiXXX]

I am not worried about looks I think all races look good, but stats wise this is my main toon and I am wanting something that would have the best end game racials and not be overly difficult. I know that for some races like Iksar come popular recommended items would be overly difficult to get. I also read that regeneration is kinda moot at later levels.

[mr_jon3s]

troll ogre or iksar, troll and iksar for increased hp regen ogre because you cant be stunned from the front by bash.

[NirrtiXXX]

so iksar is still good? I just read they cannot use bone janudaced bracers and that is a huge nix for them and such... I know they have regen, but it it still useful later when it evens out and you have regen spells?

[deadlycupcakez]

iksar regen + regen buff makes canni even more bearable. I picked ogre bc they are the fattest and thats enough reason for me.

I always recommend play based on the lore and background you want to develop around your character, min/maxing doesnt really matter, so dont be fooled by the certain types of people here who will argue differently.

the lack of JBB can pose a problem, but my 54 sham doesnt have the plats to spend on it nor have i finished the epic quest, yet still manage to have no problem soloing or grouping. go figure!

[baalzy]

big thing that makes regen not *as* clutch is Torpor at 60. Its very efficient and if you're trying to solo a big-baddy (like a dragon) then your innate regen isn't going to matter as much since you'll likely be having Torpor ticking a lot of the time. Iksars don't really get any benefits that a Troll doesn't have (innate AC, but it isn't likely to matter much) while not being able to use the JBB. In a war of attrition (slow the mob and tank with torpor) then your mana is precious and time is against you, the JBB allows you to increase your DPS without having to expend mana.

Edit: Keep in mind, in a group you're not going to notice a difference. Where the subtle differences come into play is when going after Big Game (like solo'ing lodi).

[skorge]

I will argue for troll being the best - see the thread here: http://www.project1999.com/forums/showthread.php?t=134483

Some people believe ogre's frontal stun immunity is God mode, but see my point of view on the matter, keeping in mind I played a 60 ogre on Red.

In a nut shell, any choice you make will be fine, but if I had to pick a "best" one it would be troll. I rank them as troll, ogre, barb, iksar. I rank the iksar at bottom due to inability to wear a JBB which is an inconvenience to me and my play style.

also FYI a troll won the shaman botb here.

[NirrtiXXX]

yeah that is why i am anting to make sure since i am low level 4 at the moment... and i read something when looking up spells.

[skorge]

yeah that is why i am anting to make sure since i am low level 4 at the moment... and i read something when looking up spells.

yea being an iksar shaman makes you different in the fact you will never be able to wear and use the JBB...some people choose to take this route because they like to be different, back in 2000 i chose iksar for my shaman and had fun, my AC was actually higher than most shaman i met which was cool, but back then I didn't know what it was like to have a JBB lol...it's just a great tool to have when you go "laid back" mode...it's a luxury an iksar will never have.

[Tzeriel]

Iksar has easier access to spells if I recall. And regen. And AC. And cudgel quests. No JBB though.

Troll has the regen, JBB, high STR which makes low levels better.

Ogres lack regen but frontal stun immunity lets them solo things that regen, AC or JBB won't make a difference on.

Endgame it's Ogre > Troll > Iksar. Up till then it's Troll > Iksar > Ogre. Barbarians aren't even a viable shaman race. You're gimping yourself very very badly if you choose that route.

[sanforce]

Ogre ogre ogre. For a shaman, frontal stun immunity beats out the small regen advantage of Iksar/Troll.

[Vlak]

Something else to consider, JBB's are stupidly expensive, not to mention Torpor. How serious are you on playing? If you're not going to farm the plat for either, especially JBB then the Troll advantage over iksar vanishes. Played an iksar shm to 65 on Al'Kabor, I never missed having a JBB. Mostly just cared about slow, root, canni, debuff and epic clicky dot.

[Supaskillz]

I think it depends on style to a degree for most of journey, but once you get to lvl 60 I don't think there is much of a case for anything other than ogre.

Troll worshiping Innoruk can do a quest to get a snare item which is awesome and let's shamans kite. They also get racial regen which is not insignificant for downtime.

Iksar's also get the regen, but also get an Ac bonus. They can't wear plate armor from kunark and classic (like totemic or plane of hate armor or kunark armor set). Most notable is jbb which is arguably the most powerful item for a shaman. They et access to good velious armor which offsets this some.

Barbarian suck and are ugly and start in Halas.

Ogre frontal stun immunity, most natural sta which equates to a few extra hp. Low wis so a few less mana. Starting Stats with top gear mean not much. The stun immunity is a big deal if you try to solo hard mobs at lvl 60 you can constantly cast spells and never get interrupted. With torpor + canni you can solo a lot of things. Other races face a bit more risk. Bad timing on interrupt on cast of torpor is possibly death.

[loramin]

This topic has been discussed (a lot) already; see the Priests forum. My summary of it:

Ogres have the most powerul ability at level 60, with Torpor: front stun immunity. So if you want the most ultimate power someday, go Ogre.

Trolls and Iksar have regen, which is less relevant once you have Torpor (but keep in mind it will take you a long time to get level 60 and get the 100k+ plat for Torpor). Iksar are slightly inferior though because their AC bonus doesn't make up for their lack of JBB (or other plate).

Barbarians have no special features compared to the others. However, they level faster, and have better faction than the others.

Which is right for you depends. Iksar seems bad, but keep in mind that the JBB is only barely affordable by your late 40s/early 50s (and at 60 w/ Torpor it barely gets used). It's huge for leveling from 40-60, but unless you have rich friends or the willpower to save all your plat (no tradeskills, no purchased gear, etc.) don't even worry about it. If you aren't sure you'll even make it to 60 then the Barbarian exp bonus starts looking a lot better than the Ogre's stun immunity (which barely helps leveling). But if you're in it for the most power possible over the long haul an Ogre seems a lot better. And so on.

Personally, knowing all of the above, I made a Barbarian shaman. After almost a year of play (about an hour a night on average) I'm only 56; as any other race I might not even be 50 yet. Plus I've gotten to explore almost all of the cities in Norath. Oh, and shortly before I saved up enough for a JBB someone gave me one, and it has been really, really useful, so all in all I've been pretty happy with my choice.

The good news is there's no wrong choice: even if you level a Barbarian to 60 and get him Torpor he'll only be a little bit less powerful than an Ogre. And even if you pick an Ogre, it won't take that much longer to level up than a Barbarian.

Anyhow, hope that helps.