indyjunior on Jun 26, 2018 wrote:

Hey everyone,

I am currently level 45 and I am in Mooshu and I just won the fight with General Tso where you had to threaten his chicken. I just have to say that I have found Mooshu to be brutally difficult. All of my companions die like every 3 fights and then another 3 of my companions die when I can't take my best companions into battle. All the way through Cool Ranch, I never had trouble with any of my crew even coming close to death for the most part. Yet now, even my character is dying constantly. I don't know what I might need to do to not die as much. Am I supposed to be farming for gear? Am I supposed to be doing more side quests? Any help would be very appreciated.

-Thanks

Yes, MooShu is tough. It's a higher level than Cool Ranch and the next worlds will only increase in difficulty. . I would examine your strategy and choice of companions: are you in a rut? Change up your strategy. Why do your "best" companions fail? Are their skills not right for the type of enemies you're now facing?
Level up your secondary companions and see if they have what it takes for victory.
Side quests help not only for experience for you but also gold to buy tomes to train your crew, I encourage all players to do them.
Not knowing how you're equipped, I can't tell you whether farming would help you or not. Many here will tell you to farm for X gear, but I have soloed a majority of this game; often with only bazaar gear. As long as the gear gives bonuses to your main stats, it should be enough to pull you through.
Good Luck!

indyjunior on Jun 26, 2018 wrote:

Hey everyone,

I am currently level 45 and I am in Mooshu and I just won the fight with General Tso where you had to threaten his chicken. I just have to say that I have found Mooshu to be brutally difficult. All of my companions die like every 3 fights and then another 3 of my companions die when I can't take my best companions into battle. All the way through Cool Ranch, I never had trouble with any of my crew even coming close to death for the most part. Yet now, even my character is dying constantly. I don't know what I might need to do to not die as much. Am I supposed to be farming for gear? Am I supposed to be doing more side quests? Any help would be very appreciated.

-Thanks

Go back and hit all the side quests you haven't done yet. Not only will that boost your experience, but then you can train your companions more, as well.

There is some gear that makes the fights easier, but no particular outfit is going to let you swoop through MooShu unharmed. That's just the way it is. That said, if you want to farm for something, Captain Blood's jacket is nice if the flames come up early in the fight. Don't get to where you depend on it, though.

Do you use a pet? What talents and powers has the pet manifested? You might want to look at morphing to get some boosts to your abilities.

Look at who your best crew are. Look at what you're fighting. You may want to train up some of your less-favored crew members since they might do better resisting the attacks of the enemies you face now.

What class are you?

indyjunior on Jun 26, 2018 wrote:

Hey everyone,

I am currently level 45 and I am in Mooshu and I just won the fight with General Tso where you had to threaten his chicken. I just have to say that I have found Mooshu to be brutally difficult. All of my companions die like every 3 fights and then another 3 of my companions die when I can't take my best companions into battle. All the way through Cool Ranch, I never had trouble with any of my crew even coming close to death for the most part. Yet now, even my character is dying constantly. I don't know what I might need to do to not die as much. Am I supposed to be farming for gear? Am I supposed to be doing more side quests? Any help would be very appreciated.

-Thanks

I agree it felt like a big jump from cool ranch to Mooshu.

Alex the Pirate on Jul 9, 2018 wrote:

Many moon ago, Cool Ranch was much harder, but it got a nerf to make the early game easier. This missing build in difficulty can make it feel sudden for a lot of people.

That's true - players used to complain about the "spike in difficulty" going into Cool Ranch, which was smoothed out some years ago, when dungeons were shortened and collect requirements reduced. As your pirate gets stronger and learns new skills, and your crew gains promotions and abilities in MooShu, players should find their feet right about the point they enter Subata skyway.

indyjunior on Jun 26, 2018 wrote:

Hey everyone,

I am currently level 45 and I am in Mooshu and I just won the fight with General Tso where you had to threaten his chicken. I just have to say that I have found Mooshu to be brutally difficult. All of my companions die like every 3 fights and then another 3 of my companions die when I can't take my best companions into battle. All the way through Cool Ranch, I never had trouble with any of my crew even coming close to death for the most part. Yet now, even my character is dying constantly. I don't know what I might need to do to not die as much. Am I supposed to be farming for gear? Am I supposed to be doing more side quests? Any help would be very appreciated.

-Thanks

There has been some other good advice for you already, so I'll mention a tactical idea. You have seen the power your own crew gets as they get more powers, like when a swashbuckler can both first strike and flank, or has a couple ranks of first strike. In Mooshu, you are running into enemies that can do that kind of thing too, but you can compensate for that by adjusting your battle strategy. Against witches, scattering a bit, and avoiding diagonal line ups next to each other might mean a hit only lands on one crewman, not the entire team. Maybe you have put a musketeer like Bonnie Anne out of range of being hit by the witch, and she can still attack them. Maybe you send a privy, with high will and magic resist, to go attack the Holding the Line buccaneer who is blocking attacks on a witch or musketeer. Maybe you let the enemy approach you, allowing any third level abilities you have to give bonuses to your side and take away from theirs. Maybe you hold back, while boosting your side, and let summoned creatures and/ or traps weaken them.

As you go higher, you may find that some of your crew from other classes have some talents that are actually useful to you. In General Tso's battle, you saw how his was immune much of the fight. Sending everyone forward to rush the door tends to create a blockage. Leaving some crew in the back of the room, and attacking guards by distance, can draw them away, leaving room for a hidden swashbuckler to sneak in there, hidden, or you could move a musketeer close enough to shoot a chicken guard, while one crewman charges in to checkmate the chicken. Maybe it's a witch or a privy you use to attack the chicken guards. Even if everyone you use is a melee buccaneer, you can still draw the guards away from the door with most of your crew, leaving one to buff and then run for the chicken, and can use doubloons if you have them to help him or her out. Maybe that is your pirate attacking the chicken guards. Your level sounds good for it.

Nope, just you, I breezed through MooShu like a hot knife through butter!

Just kidding. MooShu is rough compared to Cool Ranch. You've already gotten a lot of advice, so I'll try to keep mine brief (or not, oops).

-Keep your companions leveled up and look at what's most beneficial to your strategy. What's good? What has to change? Who's dying most often, and why? Keep your less armored companions away from heavy-hitting enemies, and/or find a way to buff them up. Don't be afraid to use second-tier companions if your main crew is struggling.

-What gear are you using? Is it level appropriate? Does it have grants? P101 is less of a stats and farming game than Wizard101, if you're familiar with it. It's not difficult to come by good gear in P101. Read some class guides if you feel like it, then hit the bazaar or go back and farm a few dungeons until you loot some class-specific gear. It's a little more expensive and not completely necessary, but it's certainly more beneficial than standard gear.

-Does your weapon complement your class' main stat and trained weapon bonus? If it doesn't, switch to one that does. You'll put out more damage and your critical chance will increase. I do not recommend any (slashy, stabby, smashy, staffy) weapon that's combined with a shooty weapon.

-Check what abilities the enemy has before hitting. It's usually a good idea to set ranged attacks against melee, and vice versa. Otherwise, you run the risk of activating a talent chain that will leave you and your companions suffering.

-Keep your level up. Do the side quests. You can knock out several at once if they have similar defeat-and-collect goals. I absolutely recommend going back to Cool Ranch and picking up or finishing as many as possible. It's tedious, yes, and it'll seem like you aren't gaining much exp, but you'll gain a level or two by the end.

As for the abysmal drop rates of basically every defeat-and-collect in MooShu, just keep trying. It's rough, but you'll get it eventually!

anecorbie on Jul 23, 2018 wrote:

I do recommend a staffy with a shooty combo, because talents like Readied Spell, Overwatch and Burst Fire will still activate, unlike the other combos you listed.

My main issue with (type)/shooty weapons is the reduction in damage compared to other weapon types. Staffy/shooty specifically also suffers from a lack of range in comparison with strictly shooty or staffy weapons.

I personally don't think there's a reliable outcome with the (type)/shooty weapons unless the player using them has a good handle on higher-level combat mechanics as well as the right talents trained or granted by a pet. I wouldn't recommend using them on a leveling pirate due to the gamble they invite with regards to lower damage and talent chains since it invites more retaliations from the enemy's talent set, regardless of if the enemy is a melee or ranged attacker. It spells doom if the pirate don't have enough armor/resist/dodge to get through multiple instances of those tradeoffs.

Then again it could just be me liking to play it safe and go for DPS over a long strategy game.