Jaundiced Bone Bracer - to buy or not to buy?

[Polixa]

I just got to L49, mostly via solo and casual, unguilded. Took about 6 months, as an indication of my playing time/skill.

I have a dream of one day having enough money to buy a fungi tunic, and so far I have got up to about 14k, which I see is in the ballpark to buy a JBB (according to the wiki page).

Opinions requested please, should I:

1. Keep saving up the other 25k for a fungi, or
2. Spend my wad on JBB and start saving for the fungi from scratch?

And take into account I have zero expectation of raid gear or epic in the foreseeable future. I already bought a haste item, HP jewelry and a decent 2HB weapon, and the rest is made up of gear I collected along the way.

TL;DR
This is another way of asking if the JBB is "worth it" but I thought I would throw some context around my question. Thanks for any advice.

[Mzy12345]

I would suggest you go ahead and buy the JBB if the 14k is not being used. They sell pretty often and the price is usually consistent on them so just be patient and try to pick one up at the lower end of their price range. It should be a tremendous help in getting you some additional levels faster to where you can start exping in higher level areas like Seb with more valuable drops. When you save up the other 25k for the Fungi you should have no problem selling the bracer and probably won't lose any money on the exchange if that is the direction you want to go. Good luck!

[turbosilk]

Since you are a casual I recommend play and enjoy the game and let the gear come to you. You don't have to have a JBB or fungi immediately.

[fastboy21]

I would suggest you go ahead and buy the JBB if the 14k is not being used. They sell pretty often and the price is usually consistent on them so just be patient and try to pick one up at the lower end of their price range. It should be a tremendous help in getting you some additional levels faster to where you can start exping in higher level areas like Seb with more valuable drops. When you save up the other 25k for the Fungi you should have no problem selling the bracer and probably won't lose any money on the exchange if that is the direction you want to go. Good luck!

Buy the JBB if you see a good price. Keep saving. Sell the JBB at a profit or break even (after you've enjoyed using it) to buy a fungi.

The fungi imo is a much more useful item than the JBB. If you are grouping you will rarely have opportunity to use the JBB. The fungi will do its thing all the time.

[Swish]

Try and level 55-60 in Sebilis, try to get into a King camp... you'll probably get hold of one before you hit 60 ^^

[Gumbo]

You should think to yourself if what you are buying is something that will be worth it and if it will be used as a main item? When you are in a group, what do you most often? Does the group want you to jump in and fight or do they want to use you as backup?

I'm just pointing out cause you said you're level 49 and the JBB is set to project at level 45. It's not much but you already missed out on 4 levels of use. Should have bought it 4 levels ago...

[fadetree]

Well, you'll get a lot more out of the fungi in the long run. The JBB is a good finisher, but the cast is long. At high levels, it's most useful for when you have fought down to the absolute last hit against a mob. On the other hand, a fungi will bless you forever with delicious body parts to consume for mana. A fungi is a world class gamechanger, a JBB is convenient.
Unless you just don't think you can feasibly get the next 25k, I'd keep saving for a fungi...AND I'd try to hang out in seb and get a king froup at the same time.

[SoekiWiz]

Buy the JBB if you see a good price. Keep saving. Sell the JBB at a profit or break even (after you've enjoyed using it) to buy a fungi.

The fungi imo is a much more useful item than the JBB. If you are grouping you will rarely have opportunity to use the JBB. The fungi will do its thing all the time.

+1 - No reason to NOT buy it

Also agree with the grouping in Sebilis to earn some plat/gear as you level.

Or

Root/Rot in HS or CoM Flr 2/3 if you want to maximize exp per hour. All about how you wanna play.

[loramin]

I would definitely recommend buying one. At level 49 having a JBB for soloing is really handy. Maybe not quite as handy as Fungi, but still really handy. With the JBB you can kill mobs by only casting a few roots (and maybe a heal, depending), especially if you also have the epic. Or you can cast your pet, slow the mob, and kill it with melee + pet + JBB (+ epic) damage. Either way, not having to cast DoTs (except epic) reduces downtime a ton, which means faster leveling.

Even when you get a little higher and can't just chain JBB all day, it's still a really useful item to have. And as others have said, if you save up the plat difference to get a fungi, you can always sell your JBB (just beware you might lose some plat on the deal: when I was playing a year or so ago JBB was selling for 20k-ish).

[Polixa]

Thanks everyone - I confess I hadn't even considered that I could just resell the JBB later with hopefully not too much of a loss on the deal. Seems obvious now!

Cheers

[Troxx]

I never had a JBB and I don't regret it.

I might have leveled faster with it but I enjoyed playing the role and doing the jobs the shaman brings to the table duo/trio/group.

Fungi will help you be a better shaman - so I would recommend you go that route. If you don't already have one - I'd invest the money you do have on an iksar regen bp and resell that later to help finance your fungi. Even the illy regen bp is a game changer.

[Gumbo]

I'd invest the money you do have on an iksar regen bp and resell that later to help finance your fungi. Even the illy regen bp is a game changer.

Funny thing about the Ceremonial Iksar Chestplate is the mob that drops the item looks to be easier to kill with less HP than it's PHs.

[jakerees]

Lol. You have almost 14k and want to save up 25k more for a fungi. You think you can get a fungi for 39k? Schnik will not allow that to pass.

[Troxx]

PS: if you really do want to buy one, I'm pretty sure I actually have one on my shaman that I never use (used). I'd have to double check - but if so hit me up.

PPS: I still recommend you go the regen route (Ikky and then Fungi) rather than buy the JBB.

[Lhancelot]

I would definitely recommend buying one. At level 49 having a JBB for soloing is really handy. Maybe not quite as handy as Fungi, but still really handy. With the JBB you can kill mobs by only casting a few roots (and maybe a heal, depending), especially if you also have the epic. Or you can cast your pet, slow the mob, and kill it with melee + pet + JBB (+ epic) damage. Either way, not having to cast DoTs (except epic) reduces downtime a ton, which means faster leveling.

Even when you get a little higher and can't just chain JBB all day, it's still a really useful item to have. And as others have said, if you save up the plat difference to get a fungi, you can always sell your JBB (just beware you might lose some plat on the deal: when I was playing a year or so ago JBB was selling for 20k-ish).

I agree with this.

I used my jbb till 55 lvl, and only stopped because I quit playing the shaman. The bracer enables you to spam a decent nuke using zero mana.

I solo'd tons of guards with it. Iirc, 49 is when you get a really decent pet. With that bracer I would slow Kelethin guards, let the pet tank them, wait till pet beat them down to 90% to get decent aggro then just spam nuked them.

That pet holds aggro, and you essentially can nuke those guards dead with that bracer and 1-2 dots while the pet tanks.

Another tip is if you have not done it yet, get a mage reclaim energy quested item.

These clickies can be used by shamans too from your inventory and make it so you can easily recast your pet spell until you get a good pet. This is important because a higher con pet is significantly more powerful than the weaker ones.

If you really want a fungi and have the time and patience, you could always take that 14k and play the tunnel. Buy low, sell high and within 1-2 weeks you will have 50k.

I realize not everyone likes to do that though, but honestly it's the easiest way for a casual who doesn't raid to make plats quickly.

If you buy a jbb, and find it not that useful for your play style, you can just resell it. They have held their price at 11-14k for months now, so you shouldn't lose any money on it.

[EdTuBrutus]

JBB is probably the most over-rated item in the game. It simply does not offer enough DPS to be useful. Using one will lower your efficiency.

The best case scanario, of an Ogre Shaman in melee range can do about 10% more dps with a JBB than with a GFG (and about the same dps with a PWC vs giant sized mobs) BUT the meleeing Shaman can canni without losing dps (as the canni cast does not reset the swing timer).

If you are trying to Rot mobs then the JBB will greatly increase the amount of recasts you need for Immobolise/Paralysing Earth, killing efficiency. And even if root never breaks, it would still only offer more DPS over canni-dancing for extra DoT casts between L45 and L53 when Canni-dance offers more DoT DPS than JBB.

If you have 14k sitting there, buy an Ceremonial Iksar Chestplate which you can sell when you have enough of the balance for a Fungi.

[EdTuBrutus]

I used my jbb till 55 lvl, and only stopped because I quit playing the shaman. The bracer enables you to spam a decent nuke using zero mana.


This is the big myth about the JBB and why people think its useful.

The problem is that its just not true. Using a JBB costs mana.

You are not medding, you are not cannibalising. You lose mana every time you click a JBB. The opportunity cost for a Canni-dancing L53 Shaman for every JBB cast is 150 mana**. That's a LOT of mana for 253 damage.

** technically you should adjust this for the cost of maintaining Chloroplast but you get the idea.

[Teppler]

This is the big myth about the JBB and why people think its useful.

The problem is that its just not true. Using a JBB costs mana.

You are not medding, you are not cannibalising. You lose mana every time you click a JBB. The opportunity cost for a Canni-dancing L53 Shaman for every JBB cast is 150 mana**. That's a LOT of mana for 253 damage.

** technically you should adjust this for the cost of maintaining Chloroplast but you get the idea.

What else are you doing dps with?

Dots aren't going to always be efficient, especially when the mobs get below 50%.

The longer fights go on the more mobs can dps you too.

There's opportunity cost to burning down a mob quicker than spending time canni/dancing.

[EdTuBrutus]

What else are you doing dps with?

Dots aren't going to always be efficient, especially when the mobs get below 50%.

The longer fights go on the more mobs can dps you too.

There's opportunity cost to burning down a mob quicker than spending time canni/dancing.

If you are trying to maximise your effiency and killing as many mobs as possible in a given time, then you are doing dps with melee, pet and usually 1 DoT to outdamage pet. You will finish a low health mob with melee and pet.

If you are insisting on Rotting, even the lowest level pet will finish unslowed blue mobs at sub-DoT levels of health.

You can only ever get higher efficiency using a JBB between L45 and L53 and that is ONLY if you never get interrupts, never get root breaks. Because of this, you'll almost always still be better Rotting or Meleeing even in the theoretical golden zone for a JBB.

Also, and crucially for your second point, at 26.3dps *max*, using a JBB for your damage is the SLOWEST way to kill a mob you have available. It puts you at most risk for the most time of taking additional damage from the mob.

[Troxx]

It is most useful for the lowest levels where you can click it - after that it's meh. At the high level you do more damage using your spells + canni/med/etc.

As has been pointed out it is not a "free to cast spell" given its long cast time. You give up mana (med and canni), hp (sitting regen bonus), melee dps (if meleeing), and flexibility in support jobs while clicking.

If soloing, root breaks also means casting it costs you health in getting beat on.

Decent tool in certain situations but over-rated.

[Erati]

buy

[Lhancelot]

This is the big myth about the JBB and why people think its useful.

The problem is that its just not true. Using a JBB costs mana.

You are not medding, you are not cannibalising. You lose mana every time you click a JBB. The opportunity cost for a Canni-dancing L53 Shaman for every JBB cast is 150 mana**. That's a LOT of mana for 253 damage.

** technically you should adjust this for the cost of maintaining Chloroplast but you get the idea.

Myth? Well you are welcome to your opinion, but I used it extensively and found the JBB very useful.

I might have given the guy too much info, but wanted to explain how I found it to be quite beneficial.

The nuke hits fairly hard, and as I said I solo'd with it and found it extremely useful.

I even solo'd the paladin guards in Felwithe, always keeping my mana high by mixing the JBB in once my pet got them down to 90% hps and held aggro.

I think he could buy it, try it, and see if he thinks it's useful or not. He can easily resell it if he doesn't like it.

There's a reason why people mention the JBB and the fact the Iksar race can't use it, and that's because it is a fairly decent item that at the very least can help you level.

[Lhancelot]

You can only ever get higher efficiency using a JBB between L45 and L53 and that is ONLY if you never get interrupts, never get root breaks. Because of this, you'll almost always still be better Rotting or Meleeing even in the theoretical golden zone for a JBB.


This is only if you are using root rotting method, or full melee method to kill mobs.

You can use your pet as a tank and it's very effective, I know for a fact I did it for many lvls once I got the 49 pet spell.

The 49 pet holds aggro, I learned this from a troll shaman that showed me the ropes in Kelethin killing guards and using levi across the city pulling to a spot high up.

You can pull the Kelethin guards easily and I learned how to kill them efficiently.

Slow them, send pet, he taunts and holds aggro so well I did not have to root the mob. Let the pet beat on them till they are at 85%-90% hps, by then he has aggro like a magnet.

I then put 1-2 dots on the guard, then I nuked over and over with JBB till the guard died. If he starts tot ake off running, you can root if you fear he is heading to guards.

Pet held aggro the entire time. This is why it's important to have a strong pet it definitely makes a difference in holding aggro.

Get a reclaim energy mage focus item, like http://wiki.project1999.com/Torch_Of_Alna_Quest.

The mob rarely even was on me to interrupt my JBB. Root can be used, but again, I found it rare that I ever had to use it.

I took this strategy to Felwithe guards, and did the same thing.

The only difference is the fights can last longer due to them healing and being paladins. Once they are down to 20%-30% hps or so, I would rush them, slam them to interrupt their healing, and simply nuke with the JBB. They died.

The most important thing obviously is to have slow on them, and with slow the pet or shaman can face tank the guards.

***I did have a fungi tunic, but honestly I seen shamans without a fungi doing the same thing so I know it's not needed to kill Kelethin or Felwithe guards. My shaman was a ogre.

[EdTuBrutus]

Myth? Well you are welcome to your opinion, but I used it extensively and found the JBB very useful.

I might have given the guy too much info, but wanted to explain how I found it to be quite beneficial.

The nuke hits fairly hard, and as I said I solo'd with it and found it extremely useful.

I even solo'd the paladin guards in Felwithe, always keeping my mana high by mixing the JBB in once my pet got them down to 90% hps and held aggro.

I think he could buy it, try it, and see if he thinks it's useful or not. He can easily resell it if he doesn't like it.

There's a reason why people mention the JBB and the fact the Iksar race can't use it, and that's because it is a fairly decent item that at the very least can help you level.

It is a FACT that the JBB costs mana to use - around 150 mana per cast at Level 53. That's not an opinion. The nuke does not "hit hard". It does 26.3dps maximum in ideal circumstances which is not hard. You can melee 25dps with a decent 2h weapon AND cannibalise recovering mana between swings.

You can solo whatever you want, with whatever you want. If you are doing things with a JBB you are SLOWER than any other Shaman tactic and more INEFFICIENT than any other Shaman tactic. Again, this isn't opinion. It is a demonstrable, empirical fact.

Telling anyone to buy a JBB is bad advice. It will cost you time to buy it, probably much more time to sell it (cos there's lots of sellers and not many buying) and likely end up with a cash loss on the transaction. Or WORSE, the poor guy might keep using it and kill his efficiency making EVERYTHING he does take longer.

[fadetree]

Yeah it's useful, but it's not a game changer. A fungi is a game changer.

[Lhancelot]

Yeah it's useful, but it's not a game changer. A fungi is a game changer.

Right, but he can't get a fungi yet.

JBB will make leveling easier thus making it easier for him to farm for plats for a fungi.

If he finds it less useful than he had hoped it can be treated as an investment and sold later to help him get a fungi when he has more plats saved.

Just get the JBB it doesn't make any sense to not have it, and to try it. You can't get a fungi yet, and honestly an iksar bp is less useful imo compared to the JBB.

[EdTuBrutus]

This is only if you are using root rotting method, or full melee method to kill mobs.

You can use your pet as a tank and it's very effective, I know for a fact I did it for many lvls once I got the 49 pet spell.

The 49 pet holds aggro, I learned this from a troll shaman that showed me the ropes in Kelethin killing guards and using levi across the city pulling to a spot high up.

You can pull the Kelethin guards easily and I learned how to kill them efficiently.

Slow them, send pet, he taunts and holds aggro so well I did not have to root the mob. Let the pet beat on them till they are at 85%-90% hps, by then he has aggro like a magnet.

I then put 1-2 dots on the guard, then I nuked over and over with JBB till the guard died. If he starts tot ake off running, you can root if you fear he is heading to guards.

Pet held aggro the entire time. This is why it's important to have a strong pet it definitely makes a difference in holding aggro.

Get a reclaim energy mage focus item, like http://wiki.project1999.com/Torch_Of_Alna_Quest.

The mob rarely even was on me to interrupt my JBB. Root can be used, but again, I found it rare that I ever had to use it.

I took this strategy to Felwithe guards, and did the same thing.

The only difference is the fights can last longer due to them healing and being paladins. Once they are down to 20%-30% hps or so, I would rush them, slam them to interrupt their healing, and simply nuke with the JBB. They died.

The most important thing obviously is to have slow on them, and with slow the pet or shaman can face tank the guards.

***I did have a fungi tunic, but honestly I seen shamans without a fungi doing the same thing so I know it's not needed to kill Kelethin or Felwithe guards. My shaman was a ogre.

I wondered if you didn't understand the game mechanics from previous posts and sadly this rambling post does tend to confirm that. I'm not even sure where to start addressing it, it sounds like the gish gashing from Trump. But, in the interest of trying to be helpful I'll try and address the main parts as far as they can be identified.

1. Pets hold agro because pet agro is bugged, its Not Classic but sure, use it if you want. It makes no overall difference to the mathematical inferiority of using a JBB.

2. Being able to kill something is not the same as being able to kill something effiently. You shouldn't be killing unitemised paladins. Like ever. Post Kunark, there is no reason to do guards at all unless factioning, they've got nearly twice the HP of other same level mobs, in general, and are always in zones with terrible ZEMs.

3. I've tried reading it three times now but its still not clear what argument you are trying to put forward for using the JBB. Is it because you like killing slowly or because you like downtime between slow kills? It just doesn't seem to make any sense.

[EdTuBrutus]

Right, but he can't get a fungi yet.

JBB will make leveling easier thus making it easier for him to farm for plats for a fungi.

If he finds it less useful than he had hoped it can be treated as an investment and sold later to help him get a fungi when he has more plats saved.

Just get the JBB it doesn't make any sense to not have it, and to try it. You can't get a fungi yet, and honestly an iksar bp is less useful imo compared to the JBB.

No, he can get a Ceremonial Iksar Chestplate which DOES help him instead of a JBB which does not.

Slower levelling is not easier levelling.

[Vallanor]

I have nothing to add to this conversation except that shamans getting a cheapish, tradeable clicky nuke at such a low level despite having a multitude of other efficient ways to solo and group is just about the most obnoxious thing ever. Wizards do nothing but nuke yet have to wait until 60 and join a raid guild to get a chance at a comparable item. And here you are all talking about how useless the shaman clicky bracer is when a clicky robe is the single most useful item a wizard can get. The original EQ developers deserve a beating.

That's all. Carry on.

[Lhancelot]

No, he can get a Ceremonial Iksar Chestplate which DOES help him instead of a JBB which does not.

Slower levelling is not easier levelling.

That's fine we can agree to disagree, or I can anyway. He can do as he wants, makes no difference to me.

I simply shared my experience with him, and if anything I shared helps I am happy for that. :p

[fadetree]

Yeah you can't argue with somebodies experience, it is what it is. I guess people just like the idea of a mana free nuke, and that's legit. But if you really look at it from a rigorous perspective, the JBB is meh in terms of opportunity cost and actual killing rate increase, whereas regen is a powerful increase, no matter how somebody feels about it.

[fadetree]

I wondered if you didn't understand the game mechanics from previous posts and sadly this rambling post does tend to confirm that. I'm not even sure where to start addressing it, it sounds like the gish gashing from Trump. But, in the interest of trying to be helpful I'll try and address the main parts as far as they can be identified.

1. Pets hold agro because pet agro is bugged, its Not Classic but sure, use it if you want. It makes no overall difference to the mathematical inferiority of using a JBB.

2. Being able to kill something is not the same as being able to kill something effiently. You shouldn't be killing unitemised paladins. Like ever. Post Kunark, there is no reason to do guards at all unless factioning, they've got nearly twice the HP of other same level mobs, in general, and are always in zones with terrible ZEMs.

3. I've tried reading it three times now but its still not clear what argument you are trying to put forward for using the JBB. Is it because you like killing slowly or because you like downtime between slow kills? It just doesn't seem to make any sense.

No need for insults. He is just saying he used it in a specific circumstance, and it worked, and he liked it. Of note - he also had a fungi. The equation is different if you already have a fungi, then sure, a JBB is delicious icing. If the question is JBB *or* fungi/ikky bp, then regen wins hands down. If the question is JBB now and fungi later *or* neither until a fungi can be had, I personally would keep saving for a fungi, I'd hate to lose money trying to turn the JBB over.

[Lhancelot]

Yeah you can't argue with somebodies experience, it is what it is. I guess people just like the idea of a mana free nuke, and that's legit. But if you really look at it from a rigorous perspective, the JBB is meh in terms of opportunity cost and actual killing rate increase, whereas regen is a powerful increase, no matter how somebody feels about it.

I didn't mean to make it sound like the single most powerful instant clicky to ever be introduced to EQ1, but I personally found it fit my style of play.

My shaman is 55 lvl, and I feel that the bracer was still useful when I would solo. I still used canni, I still used my spells, etc.

I just found that I had very little down time when I used the JBB along with my pet, along with my dots, spells and canni.

I went from 49 iirc, to 55 by soloing off and on via guards. Anyway. Not to beat this horse to a pulp, but the JBB proved useful for me and how I liked to play.

[Lojik]

If you worship cazic thule, you can combine JBB with spook the dead clickie to fear kite. Works pretty well from 45-49 on specs and 49-52ish on spectral curates in TT. With manafree fear, pet, and manafree nuke killin is EZsauce.

[Lojik]

JBB is also useful soloing tough stuff at 60. Sometimes you get in situations where both mana and hp are fairly low while waiting for torpor to bring you back, so having an extra tool in ur belt is nice. Don't really think spamming it at 60 is very efficient though, at least if you have epic and bane.

[magicnubs]

I have nothing to add to this conversation except that shamans getting a cheapish, tradeable clicky nuke at such a low level despite having a multitude of other efficient ways to solo and group is just about the most obnoxious thing ever. Wizards do nothing but nuke yet have to wait until 60 and join a raid guild to get a chance at a comparable item. And here you are all talking about how useless the shaman clicky bracer is when a clicky robe is the single most useful item a wizard can get. The original EQ developers deserve a beating.

That's all. Carry on.

Agreed.

Sincerely,
a pre-Luclin Ranger main