Saturos420's Guide to a Pirate (Pre-Brawler)
So you decided to become a Brawler? Being one of the newest classes in Maplestory, a lot of dedication is going to be required for you to be a successful Pirate.
Introduction
Advantages/Disadvantages
Advantages
- Attacks are fast (and can be chained).
- Attacks are good to show off.
- The later job advancements are very powerful.
Disadvantages
- Attacks are weak to begin with; damage is not that consistent.
- Costs a lot to maintain, as pirates have very low MP.
- Also, the class is fairly new, so the equipment may be a bit pricey.
Creating your Character
Create a new character and name it. Make sure your stats from the dice roll end up like this:
- STR: ??
- DEX: ??
- INT: 4 (or 5)
- LUK: 4 (or 5)
?? = Anything
The ideal values would be 4 in INT and LUK each. Pirates need DEX to wear equipment and STR to strengthen their physical force. INT and LUK are not needed because, when you have done your Job advancement, your attack power relies all on your strength (and dexterity to a certain extent for accuracy), so any additional points on INT or LUK will be useless.
If you are too lazy to get INT 4 and LUK 4, then wait until they are 4 and 5 or 5 and 4.
Becoming a Pirate
Being a Beginner
Now that you have created your character, you can start exploring and doing the simple quests on Maple Island. Do not forget to talk to Roger, eat his apple and to talk to him again, so that you can obtain three free Red Potions and free Blue Potions. Also, make sure you do Pio's quest and talk to him again to obtain the Relaxer. It is also advisable to do the Please bring this letter to Lucas quest to receive a hat which will boost your weapon defense a bit.
Train until you can leave Maple Island, or stay longer if you have the patience to train all the way to level 10 killing the monsters that the island has to offer. (If you want, you can train until you are at 75% EXP when you're level 9. If you accept A Lesson on Job Advancement by talking to Olaf in Lith Harbor, you will level to 10 when you talk to Kairin.)
When you reach level 8, it is time to head towards your Job advancement. Go to Southperry and pay Shanks 150 mesos. When you arrive in Victoria Island, you can talk to the Regular Taxicab and ask him to take you to Henesys, or you can travel on feet instead. From there, use your World Map to head toward Nautilus Harbor.
Beginner Skills
A Beginner gets 1 SP each time (s)he levels-up, until level 7. You can spend these on the Beginner skills available to you. As a Pirate, Recovery might be useful, but the Relaxer (a chair you acquire on Maple Island) heals more HP. Nimble Feet can be useful for flights and escapes, but if you acquire Dash, it will be so no longer. If you're funded slightly, you might want to max Three Snails as it will speed your training to become a pirate right along. However, you may wish to keep Three Snails at 2 because killing Red Snails may take too long.
Distributing AP (Ability Points)
Every time you level-up, you gain five Ability Points (AP). These can be used to improve your attributes — STR, DEX, INT, LUK, HP, and MP. As a Pirate, you will only need DEX to wear equipment and STR for attacks. Most players recommend not to put any AP into HP, MP, INT, or LUK, since this will dramatically weaken your Pirate in the distant future.
To become a pirate, you'll need 20 DEX. After that, keep your DEX equal to your level and put the rest of your AP into STR. For example, if you rolled 8 STR and 9 DEX when you created your character, this is how you would distribute your AP:
- Level 2: 8 STR, 14 DEX
- Level 3: 8 STR, 19 DEX
- Level 4: 8 STR, 20 DEX
- Level 5: 13 STR, 20 DEX
- Level 6: 18 STR, 20 DEX
- Level 7: 23 STR, 20 DEX
- Level 8: Etc., Etc. - Keeping adding 5 AP to your STR until you level up to 21.
At level 21, you should follow this AP build per level up: +4 STR, +1 DEX.
The First Job Advancement Procedure
For Pirates, the first job advancement occurs at level 10. To advance as a Pirate, you will need to travel to Nautilus Harbor and talk to Kairin. A Beginner needs at least 20 DEX to become a Pirate.
When you are in the Nautilus, locate Kairin in one of the rooms in the ship (the signs should help you). Talk to her about advancing as a Pirate. Once you answer "yes" to her question you will gain one Skill Point (SP) along with more HP and MP, along with some beginning-Pirate equipment.
Training as a Pirate
You are now free to do what you wish, but this guide will lead you through and give you some tips on where to train and how to use your skills.
Pirate Skills
You gain 3 SP every time you level up. Those can be used to strengthen your Pirate. The following is a list of skills Pirates can use:
| Icon | Skill Name | Description | Type | Mastered | Element | Prerequisites |
 |
Bullet Time | Permanently increases Accuracy, Max Movement Speed, and Jump. | Passive | 10 | x | - |
 |
Shadow Heart | Increases your Critical Rate and minimum Critical Damage. | Passive | 10 | x | - |
 |
Somersault Kick | A devastating kick that accompanies a backward somersault. Attacks all enemies in the vicinity. | Active | 20 | x | - |
 |
Double Shot | Fires two consecutive shots at the enemy. | Active | 20 | x | - |
 |
Dash | Double-tap the left or right arrow to perform a dash or jump dash. Also cancels all knockback. Use Corkscrew Blow or Triple Fire during the dash for additional damage. | Active | 5 | x | - |
 |
Octopush | Use while in the middle of a jump to jump even further. The jumping distance increases as the skill level increases. | Active | 5 | x | - |
Analysis (with Animations)
Bullet Time - One of the earlier skills that you will max because accuracy is key to landing damage when attacking. Also, avoidability prevents you from getting hit as much, so it helps save on HP potions. In the earlier levels, it is very useful, considering your lower DEX; you'll be missing a lot less with this skill maxed out.
Flash Fist - In my opinion, it is not necessary to max this skill out. However, if you don't want to keep Dash, then you have enough SP to max this skill out. It provides considerable damage at a cheap MP cost.
Somersault Kick - One of the most useful skills you'll have, as it is the first mob skill you'll get. From experience, I find that mob attacks are better (in terms of EXP) than single attacks. There are some SP builds that choose not to max this skill, however.
Double Shot - As a Brawler, you're not going to be using a gun, so don't even bother putting SP into this skill. However, as I'm going to mention later, this skill is an alternative to Dash if you don't want to risk unintentionally triggering Dash.
Dash - From what I've heard, Assassins find it easier to train with Haste, and here I'm going to take Dash to be the Pirate's equivalent to Haste. However, I've seen the argument that Dash may unintentionally cause you to run into a mob that you're trying to evade, so it would be safer to put 1 SP into Double Shot. Also, I've read that one may accidentally double-tap an arrow key in the middle of pulling a Corkscrew Blow - Backspin Blow chain, screwing the whole thing up. In this regard, some players see Dash as a sort of threat and hindrance rather than an advantage. If you choose to max out this skill, you're going to have to take some SP away from either Flash Fist or Somersault Kick, so it's really your choice.
Distributing SP (Skill Points)
I'm going to present you with three SP builds; the first is the "normal build", where you leave Dash (or Double Shot; see the analysis of the skills) at 1 and max your other skills. The second is if you want Dash, where you choose not to max Flash Fist. The third is an alternate build, where you level Somersault Kick to the point where you can attack 6 enemies and then stop leveling it in order for you to get the most damage out of Flash Fist. Here they are:
Normal Build
- Level 10: +1 Flash Fist
- Level 11-16: +3 Bullet Time
- Level 17: +2 Bullet Time (MAXED) , +1 Flash Fist
- Level 18-23: +3 Flash Fist (MAXED)
- Level 24-29: +3 Somersault Kick
- Level 30: +2 Somersault Kick (MAXED), +1 Double Shot (or +1 Dash)
Build Synopsis:
20 Bullet Time (MAXED), 20 Flash Fist (MAXED), 20 Somersault Kick (MAXED), 1 Double Shot (or Dash)
Dash Build
- Level 10: +1 Flash Fist
- Level 11-16: +3 Bullet Time
- Level 17: +2 Bullet Time (MAXED) , +1 Dash
- Level 18-20: +3 Dash (MAXED)
- Level 21-26: +3 Somersault Kick
- Level 27: +2 Somersault Kick (MAXED), +1 Flash Fist
- Level 28-30: +3 Flash Fist
Build Synopsis:
20 Bullet Time (MAXED), 11 Flash Fist, 20 Somersault Kick (MAXED), 10 Dash (MAXED)
Diverse Build (Somersault Kick/Flash Fist)
- Level 10: +1 Flash Fist
- Level 11-16: +3 Bullet Time
- Level 17: +2 Bullet Time (MAXED) , +1 Dash
- Level 18-20: +3 Dash (MAXED)
- Level 21-25: +3 Somersault Kick
- Level 26: +1 Somersault Kick, +2 Flash Fist
- Level 27-30: +3 Flash Fist
Build Synopsis:
20 Bullet Time (MAXED), 15 Flash Fist, 16 Somersault Kick, 10 Dash (MAXED)
Training Spots
Pirates, because of their mob skill acquired in the first job, have a number of options to train at. Some locations, however, may fare better than others depending on your interests in training.
- Levels 1-10: Training at Maple Island would do you good, but the spawn there is quite slow. Remember to do Olaf's quest mentioned earlier in this guide. You can also leave Maple Island as soon as possible, and then you could train at Henesys Hunting Ground I until you are level 10 (or 9 with 75% EXP). I would suggest you train on the snails, but if you're up to the challenge, you could move on up to the slimes.
- Levels 11-17: Slimes would be your best bet at this point; you can train at Henesys Hunting Ground I (but it may be crowded), or you can find one of the slime trees in Ellinia's surrounding areas, like The Tree That Grew I. Another "slime tree" would be Dungeon, Southern Forest I, which occasionally spawns a King Slime. Make sure you don't go AFK on this map, as you will most likely get killed if you don't pay attention when it spawns. I would suggest doing the Henesys Party Quest, as 1600 EXP every run is pretty decent at these levels. If you have an efficient party with a lurer/BGM-user and a smuggler, you might be able to stay here longer.
- Levels 18-23: You should start grinding at Pig Beach. There's a great spawn of pigs and ribbon pigs there, but other players might be training there, so be on the lookout. If you want, you could train on the green mushrooms at Henesys Hunting Ground I or in the trees around Ellinia.
- Levels 23-27: Green Mushrooms and Horny Mushrooms are viable at this point; look for them around Ellinia. If you're up for it, you could try your hand at Ant Tunnel I, as your mobbing skills are great for the spawn of Horny Mushrooms that are in the first half of the map. I wouldn't suggest going after the Undead Mushrooms, as they're a little harder to kill. If you have the patience, you could try the Kerning City Party Quest. Sometimes the scrolls you get sell for a goodly sum, and the experience isn't that bad either. However, only one party can be in the KPQ at a time, so you might have some trouble getting in. Also, if you're in the lower levels, you might not be able to hit the Ligators, King Slime, or the other monsters in the PQ. If you use potions, though, you should be fine.
- Levels 28-30: Until level 31, you can continue doing the Kerning City Party Quest (KPQ). If you don't have the patience or the interest, however, you can train on Wild Boars at Land of Wild Boar and Land of Wild Boar II and Zombie Mushrooms at Ant Tunnel I, along with Horned Mushrooms. Make sure you have a lot of potions, as your low MP needs to be constantly refilled.
Notes
Disclaimer and Credits
This is my guide to becoming a Brawler (and what to do after that), so I may have used information from other guides in the process. I borrowed the animations for the skills from Kometto's Pirate Guide, so thanks Kometto. I also based the layout of this guide on MapleTip's guide for Magicians, which I find to be an excellent model to base a guide off. If you see something here that you think you should be acknowledged for, please contact me at [email protected].
Future Edits
I am planning on revamping the aesthetics of my guides (this is my first for MapleTip) as I familiarize myself with Wiki-format. I also plan on adding some more pictures, and more in-depth analyses sometime soon. Right now I have a level 26 Pirate in Windia, so as he levels, my guide expands.
Other Guides
Pirate Guides
Kometto's Pirate Guide
Beginners' Guide to Pirate
Pirate to Infighter Guide
Kundaros brawlers and gunslinger guides
SkyShaymin's Pirate to Brawler Guide
Minjisku's gunbrawler guide
Iminboredom's brawler guide
Negabandit's Gunslinger SP Build
Gunslinger Guides
Gunslinger AP and SP Build
JoeBob's Gunslinger Guide
Guide for gunslingers
Brawler/Infighter Guides
Saturos420's Guide to a Brawler
Infighter Guide
Infighter and above Training Places
Outlaw/Valkyrie Guides
Corsair/Captain Guides
Buccaneer/Viper Guides