Ronan: Aegis Knight

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GC Eternity: Aegis Knight

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GC Season V: Aegis Knight Revamped

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Videos playable in 720px HD.

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The Aegis Knight can be rather unwieldy for the new. What he has though, is good attack speed but slows down a lot when he attacks anything with his shield bash techniques, pretty unusual. But to be frank, for what the shield is worth we often forget it exists due to habits of daily grind. The best medicine with the Aegis Knight is still to play prudently, but you can still take your chances with perfecting shield blocks. Remember, the shield block is useless if it's a melee multi-hit attack as there is no stun effect on monsters in mid-attack- and then the rest of the attack will punch through his guard.

Dodge:

• Type: Aerial Maneuver
• A welcome addition to Ronan's repertoire; the Dodge skill allows Ronan to engage in his fast attack combos without worrying about counterattack threats.
• While Aegis Knight has the block technique he can't use it all the time as he will obviously be attacking. Also because dodging is more reliable than the pin-point timing needed to execute a block.

Inherent Techniques:

• Guard (← or →, depending on direction)
• Blocks an attack while stationary if timed accurately to the attack. Stuns the attacker momentarily and deals chip damage.

• Running Guard (←Z during a dash)
• Blocks a chaser attack, negating it and dealing damage to the attacker. Only usable in a start-up dash.

Otto:

• Each hit has hard knock back, and thus need some timing and control to maintain the otto rhythm.
• Is able to strike directly above him due to high swinging range.
• Sustainability: Moderate

Notes:

• The second shield bash (critical attack) is possible to connect if you time it right with most enemies, as the last hit of the combo launches them into the air.
• Do not discount the power of your shield bash combos. They are one of the strongest default blows of the Aegis Knight.
• Rune Flares and Magic Defense are not as tactically useful in a dungeon.
• Aegis Knight's shield block is extremely potent now. It is able to completely erase projectile-type attacks and nullify damage completely from beam-type attacks after the initial block. Although such maneuvers carry great risk, the defense granted is good as absolute when successful. Bear in mind the null effect only works on Aegis Knight and doesn't prioritize other teammates unfortunate enough to be in the line of fire.
• For classes from Dragon Knight onwards, the Rune Gauge fills automatically and cannot be influenced by Ronan's attacks. It can however be sped up by switching back to Magic Knight for manual input via attacks.
• The speed of its recharge also changes depending on which weapon you are currently handling (slowest as Dragon Knight, fastest as Abyss Knight)

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Skill Tree Setup:

Special Skill: Rune Shield
Rune Shield now has 2 levels with different usage. Both shields have similar defensive properties, that allows Ronan to absorb one hit from most attacks. They are however, useless against multi-hit  or any beam-type attack and neither can they block their enemies from moving through them.

• Lv1: An instance-based shield which momentarily absorbs one hit that would be dealt to Ronan. Works against melee attacks as well but has to be timed right. The cooldown begins the moment the shield is cast.
• Lv2: A deployed shield which can last 4 seconds (as long as its cooldown) and then expires. The shield is stationary once cast, and like Lv1, will absorb only one hit from melee or projectile attacks.
• There is a slight delay between command input and the shield being cast. If Ronan gets attacked before he brings out the shield, it will fail and the cooldown gets effected nonetheless.

Enchant:
All Enchants are available for 15 seconds and have a 10 second cooldown then after. Lightning and Curse enchants only last for one hit and cooldown begins once a blow is dealt.

• Fiery Enchant: Embers fall on the ground where the enemy is struck. They deal very rapid damage but is sometimes not safe for use against bosses, as it triggers continuous counterattacks. Also works excellently with Abyss Knight due to high hit count.
• Lightning Enchant: Deals extra damage on one hit only and adds the Status Inflict: Shock to enemies.
• Curse Enchant: Deals additional damage of a non-substantial amount.
• Vampiric Enchant: Recovers ~1% of HP on every hit dealt. Does not work with pet attacks or skills. Hitting a larger group of enemies guarantees a faster rate of recovery.

Activating an Enchant will render Ronan immobile until he completes the animation. If you face danger, use Dodge to immediately move out of the way (The enchant is granted the moment you press "CC", so you can dodge almost immediately)



Special Skill: Erudon's Sword & Shield (SS)
Its purpose is completely defensive compared to the others. Erudon's SS simply conjurers up a 3-second protective barrier around Ronan that remains at only where it is cast and keeps himself or any ally impervious to any form of damage, and also allows phasing through enemies within the barrier. Again while in this mode, there are some liberties and restrictions to take note of-

• Ronan can still use his 4th skill, Arc Breath.
• The gauge empties out completely upon use.
• During the conjuration phase of the barrier, his skills are momentarily sealed off until he resumes his idle stance.
• At the same time, he is impervious to attack when he is conjuring the barrier.
• Trivia: Ronan's eyes glow a shade of light blue when the barrier is cast
  

Rune Gauge:
Ronan's Rune Gauge is an additional bar just below his Dodge meter which controls his ability to use Erudon's Sword & Shield as Aegis Knight; It must be completely filled for him to do so. As Aegis Knight, the gauge increases automatically on its own without influence from Ronan's attacks.

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Skill Setup:

Weapon Skills
Tier 1:

Divine Slasher

• Type: Close-In, Impact
• Range: Short
• Damage: Multi
• Animation: Short
• Engages a melee combo and striking the enemy with a powerful knock back slash.
• Simple, powerful enough to create distance between Ronan and his enemies thanks to the impact.

Tier 2:

Furious Rush

• Type: Splash
• Range: Short
• Damage: Multi
• Animation: Short
• Ronan leaps straight into the air and delivers two powerful magical bursts along with the sword slashes.
• No longer leaps forward.
• The slashing damage has been significantly increased.

Tier 3:

Blame Buster

• Type: Linear, One-Shot
• Range: Mid
• Damage: Burst
• Animation: Short
• Summoning a rune in front of him, Ronan thrusts his sword into the rune which emits a forceful magical burst ahead, sending enemies flying with the blow.

Knight Magic
Tier 1:

Rune Flare

• Type: Self
• Range: Short
• Damage: Nil
• Animation: Short
• Creates a magic charge which can be used offensively with a technique known as Psychic Force or to buff up skills for one instance of use.
• Rune Flare is case with no delay
• A maximum of 3 charges may be present at once. Using Psychic Force discharges one Rune charge. Activating a skill uses any and all remaining charges, increasing damage by a small % from the charges expended.
• Rune Flares remain permanent, until stage transitions occur in which they are then removed.
• Rune Flares cannot be used by other of Ronan's classes, even with critical hits nor skill use. Only Aegis Knight is capable of using them. As such, the charges will stay active until expended or during stage transition.
• *The damage graph above shows the raw damage it deals via Psychic Force.

Tier 2:

Magic Defense

• Type: Self, Allies
• Range: Short
• Damage: Nil
• Animation: Short
• Casts a defensive barrier around himself and nearby allies. The barrier acts as a form of Hyper Armor that expires after 10 seconds or absorbs up to 3 hits before dispelling.

Tier 3:

Tempest Slayer

• Type: Linear, AoE: Medium
• Range: Mid
• Damage: Multi
• Animation:Long
• Summons a Tempest guardian to slay his enemies, which it charges forwards and bursts into a rage that damages enemies around its body.

Tier 4:

Arc Breath

• Type: Splash, Def Up
• Range: Medium
• Damage: Burst - Multi
• Animation: Short
• Ronan unleashes the true might of the Aegis Knight in a powerful burst of divine energy and lightning that deals immense damage to enemies around him and also protects his allies for 10 seconds with Super Armor.
• Damage taken during this time is reduced to 1.
• The name swapping with Dragon Knight's Arc Breath is kinda lazy >_>''' Oh well.

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