Build:Any/W Pre-Searing Seed Farmer

This build is in the testing phase. Please join the discussion and rate this build if you have experience with this or closely related builds. This build has been designed for the following use: PvE farming

Designed to farm Aloe Seeds in pre-searing Ascalon for Unnatural Seeds by repeating the quest The Vineyard Problem. This farming spot is also suitable for collecting Red Iris Flowers and Enchanted Lodestones.

Unlike some other farms in pre-searing, The Vineyard Problem requires your character to be a Warrior primary or secondary - an empty secondary profession slot isn't enough. This mostly limits this farm to W/any and R/W (and alts) since Rangers are the only other profession that tend to go for a Warrior secondary in pre.

The build displays level 9 attributes, as that's generally the maximum one can reach by farming things south of the wall, and that's more than enough to kill the mobs here.

Attributes and Skills

Warrior / Any 8 + 1 + 1 Axe Mastery 2 + 1 Strength Your attack skills gain 3% armor penetration. Cyclone Axe CoreWarrior. Axe Mastery 10Cyclone AxeAxe AttackPerform a spinning axe attack striking for +9 damage to all adjacent opponents. This attack skill has 3% armor penetration.54 Executioner's Strike CoreWarrior. Axe Mastery 10Executioner's StrikeAxe AttackIf this attack hits, you strike for +30 damage. This attack skill has 3% armor penetration.8 Frenzy CoreWarrior. UnlinkedFrenzyStanceFor 8 seconds, you attack 33% faster but take double damage.54 Optional CoreNo Profession. UnlinkedOptionalOptionalOptional. Optional CoreNo Profession. UnlinkedOptionalOptionalOptional. Optional CoreNo Profession. UnlinkedOptionalOptionalOptional. Optional CoreNo Profession. UnlinkedOptionalOptionalOptional. Optional CoreNo Profession. UnlinkedOptionalOptionalOptional.   Template code

Variant: W/R Pre-Searing Seed Farmer

Ranger / Warrior 8 Wilderness Survival 2 Marksmanship Ignite Arrows PropheciesRanger. Wilderness Survival 8Ignite ArrowsPreparationFor 24 seconds, your arrows explode on contact, dealing 11 fire damage to target and all adjacent foes.10212 Frenzy CoreWarrior. UnlinkedFrenzyStanceFor 8 seconds, you attack 33% faster but take double damage.54 Dual Shot CoreRanger. UnlinkedDual ShotBow AttackShoot two arrows simultaneously at target foe. These arrows deal 25% less damage.1010 Optional CoreNo Profession. UnlinkedOptionalOptionalOptional. Optional CoreNo Profession. UnlinkedOptionalOptionalOptional. Optional CoreNo Profession. UnlinkedOptionalOptionalOptional. Optional CoreNo Profession. UnlinkedOptionalOptionalOptional. Optional CoreNo Profession. UnlinkedOptionalOptionalOptional.   Template code If your secondary is Ranger and you don't have anything better than the beginner axe, use this variant as a primary warrior.

Variant: R/W Pre-Searing Seed Farmer

Ranger / Warrior 8 + 1 + 1 Wilderness Survival 2 Marksmanship Ignite Arrows PropheciesRanger. Wilderness Survival 10Ignite ArrowsPreparationFor 24 seconds, your arrows explode on contact, dealing 13 fire damage to target and all adjacent foes.10212 Frenzy CoreWarrior. UnlinkedFrenzyStanceFor 8 seconds, you attack 33% faster but take double damage.54 Dual Shot CoreRanger. UnlinkedDual ShotBow AttackShoot two arrows simultaneously at target foe. These arrows deal 25% less damage.1010 Optional CoreNo Profession. UnlinkedOptionalOptionalOptional. Optional CoreNo Profession. UnlinkedOptionalOptionalOptional. Optional CoreNo Profession. UnlinkedOptionalOptionalOptional. Optional CoreNo Profession. UnlinkedOptionalOptionalOptional. Optional CoreNo Profession. UnlinkedOptionalOptionalOptional.   Template code

Variant: E/W Pre-Searing Seed Farmer

Elementalist / Warrior 8 + 1 + 1 Fire Magic 2 Air Magic Fire Storm CoreElementalist. Fire Magic 10Fire StormSpellCreate a Fire Storm at target foe's location. For 10 seconds, foes adjacent to that location are struck for 25 fire damage each second.10220 Lightning Javelin PropheciesElementalist. Air Magic 2Lightning JavelinSpellSend out a Lightning Javelin that strikes for 20 lightning damage if it hits. If Lightning Javelin strikes an attacking foe, that foe is interrupted. This Spell has 25% armor penetration and strikes all foes between you and your target.515 Flare CoreElementalist. Fire Magic 10FlareSpellSend out a flare that strikes target foe for 50 fire damage if it hits. If you are Overcast, Flare hits adjacent foes as well.51 Optional CoreNo Profession. UnlinkedOptionalOptionalOptional. Optional CoreNo Profession. UnlinkedOptionalOptionalOptional. Optional CoreNo Profession. UnlinkedOptionalOptionalOptional. Optional CoreNo Profession. UnlinkedOptionalOptionalOptional. Aura of Restoration CoreElementalist. Energy Storage Aura of RestorationEnchantment SpellFor 60 seconds, you gain 0..1..1 Energy and are healed for 200..440..520% of the Energy cost each time you cast a spell.5¼20   Template code

Variant: Mo/W Pre-Searing Seed Farmer

Monk / Warrior 8 + 1 + 1 Smiting Prayers 2 Axe Mastery Healing Breeze CoreMonk. Healing Prayers Healing BreezeEnchantment SpellFor 15 seconds, target ally gains +4..8..9 Health regeneration.1015 Symbol of Wrath PropheciesMonk. Smiting Prayers 10Symbol of WrathSpellFor 5 seconds, foes adjacent to the location in which the spell was cast take 24 holy damage each second.5230 Cyclone Axe CoreWarrior. Axe Mastery 2Cyclone AxeAxe AttackPerform a spinning axe attack striking for +5 damage to all adjacent opponents.54 Orison of Healing CoreMonk. Healing Prayers Orison of HealingSpellHeal target ally for 20..60..73 Health.512 Optional CoreNo Profession. UnlinkedOptionalOptionalOptional. Optional CoreNo Profession. UnlinkedOptionalOptionalOptional. Optional CoreNo Profession. UnlinkedOptionalOptionalOptional. Optional CoreNo Profession. UnlinkedOptionalOptionalOptional.   Template code

Variant: Me/W Pre-Searing Seed Farmer

Mesmer / Warrior 8 + 1 + 1 Domination Magic 2 Inspiration Magic Empathy CoreMesmer. Domination Magic 10EmpathyHex SpellFor 12 seconds, whenever target foe attacks, that foe takes 40 damage and target foe deals 10 less damage with attacks.10210 Shatter Delusions PropheciesMesmer. Domination Magic 10Shatter DelusionsSpellRemove one Mesmer Hex from target foe. If a Hex was removed, that foe and all adjacent foes take 55 damage.5¼6 Cyclone Axe CoreWarrior. Axe Mastery Cyclone AxeAxe AttackPerform a spinning axe attack striking for +4..10..13 damage to all adjacent opponents.54 Ether Feast CoreMesmer. Inspiration Magic 2Ether FeastSpellTarget foe loses 3 Energy. You are healed 26 for each point of Energy lost.518 Optional CoreNo Profession. UnlinkedOptionalOptionalOptional. Optional CoreNo Profession. UnlinkedOptionalOptionalOptional. Optional CoreNo Profession. UnlinkedOptionalOptionalOptional. Optional CoreNo Profession. UnlinkedOptionalOptionalOptional.   Template code

Variant: N/W Pre-Searing Seed Farmer

Necromancer / Warrior 8 Axe Mastery 2 Blood Magic Cyclone Axe CoreWarrior. Axe Mastery 8Cyclone AxeAxe AttackPerform a spinning axe attack striking for +8 damage to all adjacent opponents.54 Executioner's Strike CoreWarrior. Axe Mastery 8Executioner's StrikeAxe AttackIf this attack hits, you strike for +26 damage.8 Frenzy CoreWarrior. UnlinkedFrenzyStanceFor 8 seconds, you attack 33% faster but take double damage.54 Blood Renewal PropheciesNecromancer. Blood Magic 2Blood RenewalEnchantment SpellFor 7 seconds, you gain +3 Health regeneration. When Blood Renewal ends, you gain 60 Health.15%117 Optional CoreNo Profession. UnlinkedOptionalOptionalOptional. Optional CoreNo Profession. UnlinkedOptionalOptionalOptional. Optional CoreNo Profession. UnlinkedOptionalOptionalOptional. Optional CoreNo Profession. UnlinkedOptionalOptionalOptional.   Template code

Equipment

• Generally, anything will do. The Starter Axe provided by the questgiver is enough to get the job done.

Optional

• The best Axe you can afford (if your profession relies on Axe skills for the farm). Anything better than the beginner Axe provided by the quest giver will noticeably improve the build's performance. You can get a better one from Walden in Lakeside County for 3 Unnatural Seeds.
  • The Kyhlo Axe crafted by Arthur Ayala in Ascalon City is slightly "better" because it has some bonus HP, but that's basically irrelevant for this farm. You should be able to get the crafting materials for it just by salvaging white weapon drops for 1-2 runs though.
• A ranged weapon, any will do. Pulling individual Stone Elementals from a distance cuts down on travel time, and you can also use ranged weapons to one shot level 0 Aloes you find on your way to the main spot. By killing them from a distance you'll only need to walk up to them if they drop something notable, once again saving you time.

Usage

General

• Make sure that you don't have Vanguard Bounty: Utini Wupwup in your quest log if you're level 10+! There's a chance that a high level Grawl spawns near the Aloes and kills them all before you'd get to the spot.
• The Aloes spawned by the Vineyard quest won't attack, therefore healing wouldn't be necessary for this farm. If however you choose to take one of the longer routes and end up fighting Stone Elementals, use your healing skills as needed.

W/Any

• Maintain FrenzyCoreWarrior. UnlinkedFrenzyStanceFor 8 seconds, you attack 33% faster but take double damage.54 while farming.
• Open with Cyclone AxeCoreWarrior. Axe Mastery 10Cyclone AxeAxe AttackPerform a spinning axe attack striking for +9 damage to all adjacent opponents.54 and use it on CD. Try to stand in the center of the Aloe circle for maximum effectiveness.

E/W

• You don't need to get into melee range. Cast Fire Storm on one side of the circle of Aloes and Lightning Javelin on the farthest Aloe of the other side of the circle.
• Spam down the remaining Aloes with Flare.

Mo/W

• Cast Symbol of Wrath in the middle of the circle formed by the Aloes.
• Add a cast of Cyclone Axe if you want to speed things up a bit.

R/W

• Use Ignite Arrows and Frenzy.
• Target the Large Aloes and spam them down with arrows, the smaller ones should die to your AoE damage.

Me/W

• With Domination 9 or higher, casting any hex + Shatter Delusions for AoE damage (twice!) is enough to kill all the Aloes.
• If your Domination Magic isn't high enough, fall back on using Cyclone Axe and autoattacks.

N/W

• Use Cyclone Axe to kill the Aloes just like a Warrior would, since Necromancer AoE isn't great in pre.

The Farm

Aloe route

Estimated time: ~1-3 minutes

• Leave from the Barradin Estate.
• There are 3 routes you could take:
  • Option 1: red path. This one is the longest and puts a heavier emphasis on incorporating Stone Elementals to the farm. There are 2 groups you could farm before heading east.
  • Option 2: turquoise path. This is a medium length route that branches out from the red path and only farms the first Stone Elemental group.
  • Option 3: yellow path. The shortest one by far, this is only about the seeds. Turn left right as you enter the zone and head southeast to the spot.
• We recommend taking either route 1 or 2 in order to combat the anti-farming code and to pick more Red Iris Flowers, but option 3 is also a viable one.
• For the longer routes head west (forward) as you zone into Green Hills. Make your way to the first Stone Elemental group, kill any Aloes on the way.
• Ball up at least 5 Stone Elementals and nuke. Their damage shouldn't be too threatening even for low level characters, but use your healing skills as you see fit.
  • Most of these elementals aren't hostile, so use a ranged weapon for pulling.
• Make your way east towards the Aloes.
  • Whether you take the red or turquoise path should be influenced by the spawn patterns of Aloes and Red Iris Flowers. Try to maximize your loot, it's different each time.
• The Aloes won't attack even when attacked, so killing them poses no threat to you.
• The Aloes are forming a circle - proceed to kill them as stated by the usage.
• Pick up your loot, zone back to Barradin Estate, abandon the quest, take it again and repeat the run. NEVER hand in the quest!
• Optional: incorporate the quest Warrior's Challenge into each run. Skip this if you only care about loot, but the quest spawns a level 5 Ettin near the Aloes who could be killed for XP, since this is an exceptionally high level foe south of the wall.

Notes

• The questgiver will always give you a new Starter Axe upon accepting the quest. This could clog up your inventory. Instead of destroying the axe simply drop it on the ground when you zone into Green Hills County, this will spare you from a popup window.
• Igneous Summoning Stone can be used to mop up remaining mobs or add some extra AoE, but never use it before the nuke phase or else the mobs might not ball up properly. Urban legend says the Imp lowers drop rates, but that's yet to be confirmed.
• Always carry an Identification Kit! You'll get a lot of blue drops which can contain an "increased sale value" mod in the ~60-70g range which is a significant boost to your loot. Highly salvageable (HS) items are also worth holding onto - some players can pay 1-3k gold for these (mostly the martial weapons like Swords and Axes, but also Wands) because with a Charr Salvage Kit these could be salvaged into rare materials such as Steel Ingot. Certain players collect these for their rare status in pre.

Related Builds

• Mo/E Pre-Searing Farmer – another pre-searing build, covers most notable farms. Mo/E can also start farming as soon as level 2, which is a big plus if you're just starting out in pre.
• R/W Pre-Searing Charr Farmer - a build for farming higher level pre-searing mobs and those that can't be balled up properly.