Dark Wolf is so useless, whats the point?

[Redtalktree]

Any Dark hunter manage deploy the wolf in combat(reaper) without it dieing immediately oneshotted?
Only thing is that it take up alot of filler AP in the enhancement trees, just not sure if its worth it.

 

[SlayerOfDungeons]

I have come to the same conclusion. I really wanted to have a good pet, but I don't see that being a thing right now.

 

[rabidfox]

Most pets/hires/summons fall off quickly when the difficulty is turned up. They can still act as a distraction, but they really shine when running n/h/(and some e).

 

[Fizban]

Comparitively I think the Dark Wolf is a pretty good pet.

 

[Nandos]

If they ever revamp Reaper trees, one of the things they could add would be strong pet/hireling buffs. This would allow them to survive better in Reaper without being too strong on regular difficulties.

 

[rabidfox]

If they ever revamp Reaper trees, one of the things they could add would be strong pet/hireling buffs. This would allow them to survive better in Reaper without being too strong on regular difficulties.

Yeah. If they implement the leadership system with reaper work then they should make pets/hires/summons get those shared buffs too and not just only other players.

 

[Bjond]

The only pet I've had that could stay alive (at all) was the PM Skeleton pet. The only reason it managed to live was because my PM kept L/DA up (for himself) and it also healed the pet. Without a constant massive influx of healing, any pet will just die.

IMHO, there should be a band of SPCP Druids that hunts down and kills any player that summons a pet. The NPCs live in this world. They know what happens shortly after someone summons a pet and they shouldn't like it.

 

[PaleFox]

Careless master was removed because of this.
But I do agree, without a constant influx of healing spells on the pets, they're kinda worthless.

I like that they have their own stats points, but without a proper enhancements tree.

 

[Sylvado]

I have been running elite at +2 to test DH for hardcore with a cleric hire. My wolf has been holding pretty well, currently running 10s at level 12.

 

[nntktt]

Still useful for stone carrying and pulling levers.

 

[Onyxia2016]

I am running a DH and the wolf is holding its own in low reaper at level. Get or craft some good armor with plus fortification, PRR and MRR. Turn some good handwraps into a collar to give the wolf a little more bite.

Go into the wolfs character sheet and drag to its hotbar its rage and hamstring skills so you can trigger them, although it does a ok job of using these on its own it is still nice to make sure as if he uses it you can see the cool down ticking away.

It also helps with spotting traps,

 

[Holley]

I thought the point of reaper was for the "challenge"? Why people using hires and pets in reaper then? Especially hires? I remember prior to reaper there was a group on the forums complaining about "how easy the game was" If it's easy why have a hire? I understand wanting a pet because they are so cute.

 

[kmoustakas]

Artie puppy as a warforged is amazing 6-14 with the healing aura on r1. Bonus points if you get a wf hireling as well such as Anthem. Sadly I haven't had the chance to run a pure dark hunter yet, only as a splash so I skip the wolf but I do believe if you TRY to make the pet better such as druid past lives and augment summon, it can be amazing at low levels.

 

[Maze]

Yeah..hires/pups/etc aren't really useful besides lever pullers, ddoor, and the random heal they might donald duck at you.

 

[Onyxia2016]

I guess it comes down to either play styles or difficulty being played.
Setting them to attack and forgetting about them can and does cause issues. You have to use them like any other ability.
Knowing when to have them go beast mode versus holding back and waiting for the right moment to strike.
Do not allow them to dive into the lava to get to the mob you are casting or shoot at.
Wait until it comes to you then give them the "Sic em boy!" command.
Some, like me, have no issue with pets/hirelings dyeing when running at level R1-R4.
Now past that and you are asking for trouble.

I guess the real questions is not if they are useful but rather are they useful for how and what you play.

 

[Buddha5440]

I've found the best option for a summon/hire/pet is the Djinn (Summon Nature's Ally/Summon Monster VII) as, if it does not get one-shotted, it becomes invulnerable for a while after damaged to a certain point while still drawing aggro.

 

[SlayerOfDungeons]

I didn't know that about Summon Monster. I'll need to give that a try. I usually just ignore that spell because pets are so terrible.

 

[Buddha5440]

Just remember whenever you fight a Djinn and they go into that Air Elemental looking phase and you can't damage them except with a few untyped damage/insta-kill spells...the summoned ones do the same thing.

 

[Dunspartacus]

I think the fact that it can find traps and such for you and gets your imbue does make it a little more appealing than other pets, but yeah it still suffers most of the same AI and falloff at higher levels problems of most summons that sorta just make it feel like more of a headache than its worth.

 

[Kritikal]

I just leveled my DH to 10. I would say pets are not useless for my playstyle. My usage for the Wolf and other pets is as follows:

a. While questing, set the pet for guarding you. It won't attack until you are attacked; in which case you'll have aggro.
b. While in wilderness zones, I let them run free. Pets really shine in these zones.
c. Get Augment Summoning. Not many Items exist but the necklace from Ravenloft, Kindred Spirit, works well at level 10 so you don't have to burn a feat. Once you get to Epic (around 26), I love the Necklace from Haunted Halls, that procs a Shadow (just upgrade and the Augment Summoning is added to the necklace).
d. Convert the free handwraps from Ravenloft to a collar for some offense. Keep equipment current with the best fortification and some PRR for defense.
e. Make sure your pet has ship buffs.
f. Sometimes it's best to park them until you know they will be needed.

So far, I only have tier 3 in the Dark Hunter tree for the imbues. That is probably all I'm going to take in it. The rest is in the Tabaxi tree (for evasion and haste), and DWS. I did spend 3 points in HW for conjure arrows.