Back To MapleStory Skill Guide

Chief Bandit Guide (Versatiliy Build) 1.3

Introduction:

The bandit's third job is a challenging one. Leveling at high levels is very
difficult and expensive. Despite the difficulty, the rewards are well worth it.
Once all skills are available, bandits are flashy, fluid, and impressive to
watch. Bandits are the only true combination fighters in maple story, relying
on the use of multiple attack skills and quick execution to reach their full
potential. Every skill you get adds to your total attack, and this is the
concept that should drive your build order.

Following my guide, you'll get a strong Thieves, Assaulter, and SB combination
to use by early 8X - faster than any other build. With this variety in skills,
your training options are vastly improved. It's the combination that counts for
Chief Bandits. You can go more places, and do more things, keeping the game
fresh and more enjoyable.

About this guide:

I've written this guide based on how people will actually use the skills they
get. I've tried to keep it short, and left the details of how precisely to add
the points up to the individual reader. Instead, I'll assume that that by the
time you need to read a guide such as this, you'll already have learned about
AP/SP point distribution and found hidden-street's skill descriptions and
information.

At the time of this writing I am a level 11X STR Chief Bandit in Bera (GMS). As
I progress I will update the guide, but I don't forsee many changes. I'm far
enough along to know that what I have done in the past has worked.

About my build:

The nice thing about bandit's third job is you have a lot of options. Because
Savage Blow remains a powerful skill, we have the freedom to max our skills in a
way that best fits our playing style. I have a particular skill build that
worked out well for me. This may not be the perfect build for you, but as I
said, bandits are flexible. Adapt it to your playing style as much as you
please.

This build is a compromise between maxing thieves first, and maxing assaulter
first. Timing is key - with my build, you will get a strong assaulter attack
when you need it most, around mid 8X. This is when one hit kill monsters like
zombies and hectors are no longer effective for leveling. Stopping thieves at
level 18 will allow you to obtain a usable assaulter attack much earlier than if
you finish thieves first - and all the while you will have a powerful mob
attack to assist you while you are working on assaulter.

Level 18 thieves can still speedily decimate a mob of YnP, zombies, hectors, or
lucidas. You won't need to attack more than four enemies at once, until later
levels. You can put the other 12 SP into assaulter, giving you a rather large
head start on it. With strong Assaulter, you will be more useful solo and in
parties at Ludibrium. Having both is best.

Mesos:

Your peak meso earning period will be during 7X and early 8X. Zombies and
anything you can kill in one hit are good mesos and experience. Ludi monsters,
however, drop very little mesos, for the high damage they inflict. This is a
serious problem - without a funding source, you will likely have to return to
zombies or play the Free Market to make enough mesos to train at Ludibrium.
Unless you get lucky and get some good drops, you'll have to look elsewhere for
funds. Skill with managing mesos is essential - especially to the unfunded
bandit. Don't expect to ever be rich, you'll have all your mesos in equipment
and not so much in your pocket.

Equipment:

Equipment matters to bandits more than any other class. The reason for this is
our attacks are weak compared to other third jobs without good equipment. Try
your very best to obtain what you can. Remember for thieves every three ATK is
two levels of power!

DEX scrolled equipment is important because it allows you to satisfy the DEX
requirements for armors and weapons without requiring the use of valuable
ability points. The increase in total available stats allows you to increase
your LUK, which in turn increases your attack power.

Start picking up DEX gear during 6X or 5X, or you may end up using costly AP
resets later on. Stat points are more important than WDEF on armors, so if you
find an armor with lower DEF but an extra LUK, DEX, or STR, take it! Here is a
list of some things you will need:

Well scrolled dagger (Above average base, then at least +6 60%)
High attack glove (Especially high for STR bandits! - keep upgrading as you
get more mesos)
Dex cape (Lets you put points into LUK instead of DEX to equip items)
Jump shoes (Scrolled with 10% and 60% shoe for jump, provides DEX)
Wristguard Shield - +1 LUK, DEX, or STR here.
Above average armors - with additional LUK bonuses.
Hat that provides DEX/STR and LUK (STR hats are cheap!)
Any lower level high dex weapon (Perhaps a claw?) to wear while putting on the
armors.

A 5 dex cape should be dirt cheap. Get this for starters, because 100% scrolls
are easy to find in the Free Market (they drop from slimes!). You probably
already have a cape, and the scrolls should be very inexpensive.
You can upgrade when you get a chance. Try your luck with scrolling snowshoes
with scrolls for jump (provides DEX) - I came out with 10 DEX shoes.

Whatever you do, don't get DEX points for the armor for a particular level
before you get a scrolled weapon of the same level! You would have to sacrifice
10 points of DEX in order to equip the armors, and you wouldn't get the benefit
of the additional ATK. You will be a couple levels weaker for it, even if the
armor provides good bonuses. I've seen level 90+ bandits wearing Osfa but not
carrying a Cursayer or Varkit - this is the wrong thing to do.

SP Distribution:

Level 70: 1 Assaulter

Use this first point on Assaulter. Not only does it look cool, it's an excellent
movement skill. You can jump and teleport onto platforms (using an enemy in
between), and close in on the enemy faster. One point of assaulter here is
essential. If you haven't already, buddy some reliable priests. They will be
essential later on.

Level 71-76: 18 Band of Thieves (3 each level)

Level 18 thieves will help you level much faster. At level 18, you can attack
four monsters at once, twice a second, at 190% normal attack. Why stop at 18? It
provides maximum damage for four hits. Thieves has diminishing value with our
current maps as the level gets higher. How often do you have to attack more than
four monsters at once? Almost never. Don't max thieves just yet. You'll have
to later on though, to attack higher level mobs at Ludibrium.

Thieves will let you train at hectors (3 hits, four kills, 170 exp each), and
zombies (4 hits, 4 kills, 190 exp each). You can also take on Lucidas and YnP
with it. It can be used in combination with Savage Blow to take down a mob
- savage blow each monster, then thieves once to finish the mob. It's almost as
fast as one hit kill at zombies, which you won't be able to do until late 7X
(LUK) or early 8X (STR).

Level 77: 3 Chakra

Chakra isn't a very useful skill. At level 3, you will heal between 300-600 HP,
and only if your HP is less than 50% and you are standing completely still. In
the time it takes for the skill to execute, you would have easily made back the
one white pot worth of healing it provides. However, it is a prerequesite to
mesos guard, which is essential.

Level 78: 1 Mesos Guard, 1 Mesos Explosion, 1 Assaulter

Mesos guard takes 50% of the damage, and converts a percentage of it to mesos
right out of your pocket. Having this will allow you to take on enemies you
feared before, with almost no risk of death. Lycans, werewolves, dark yeti and
pepes, and cerebes will now be easy to kill. I did Crimson Balrogs at this
level, and you can too - just keep your health bar full at all times, and
refresh Mesos Guard every couple attacks.

Mesos Explosion is another vital training skill, used mainly for clearing thick
mobs. You probably won't be using it for training this early on, but blowing up
things with Mesos Explosion is quite fun. When using Mesos Explosion, remember
that it is most efficient when you use the maximum number of meso bags. You can
kill almost anything other than bosses with 10 bags of 1K mesos. Practice
dropping mesos fast - you will need these skills later on.

At this point, we'll start maxing assaulter. Assaulter is necessary to get high
damage on high WDEF monsters later on, especially in the late 80's and onward
when you'll start training at Ludibrium. Having assaulter is a requirement for
party leveling at Ludi - without it you won't be doing much damage to the high
DEF monsters there. It's also excellent for hunting for items.

Level 79-88: Max Assaulter (3 Each Level)

With higher levels of Assaulter, you will be able to train at Vikings
(2100 exp), Master Death Teddy (1720 exp), and Death Teddy (1300 exp). Vikings
are especially good to attack because of all of the areas where they can be hit
safely using all the skills you have - Assaulter, Thieves, Savage blow, and
Mesos explosion.

Master Death Teddies, at 1720 exp each, are good to attack as well because they
can be assaultered through with ease. They aren't too wide, and the magic
attacks are limited by assaulter's stun effect. The bottom can then be cleared
using Mesos Explosion.

Most importantly, at these levels you can now begin to participate in Ludibrium
party leveling. This is the fastest and least expensive method of leveling your
character - try to get in on as many parties as you can. Parties at Master
Death Teddies and Grim Phantom Watch are ideal and provide the most experience.

Level 88-89: 5 Mesos Guard

Here, we bring Mesos Guard to level 6. At this level mesos guard lasts for just
under a minute, which should stop it from killing you when the timer runs out at
33 seconds. You can skip this now and do it later if you primarily train with a
priest, but most will want to do it.

Level 90-93: Max Thieves (3 each level)

With max thieves at this level, you should now be able to take on the higher
level mobs in Ludibrium with some speed, with the aid of a priest. Thieves is
not useful even at these levels unless you can attack at least four or more
monsters at once - otherwise the pot cost of taking them on as a mob will
exceed the cost of luring them out one by one and attacking them singly. This
skill has the highest total damage output of any skill you have, putting out
1260% basic attack per hit into a mob of six, twice per second. Weapon defense
is factored in, so you will only get full output on monsters with lower defense.

Thieves can be used at maps like Dual Ghost Pirates, or in the bottom of Master
Death Teddies. It is expensive to do but the experience is fast.

Level 94-110: Max Pickpocket / Mesos Explosion

Pickpocket and Mesos Explosion, used in combination with Savage Blow, Assaulter
and Thieves, is a very strong mob finishing move. It is executed in concert
with your other attacks, dealing additional damage to monsters without taking
much additional time. These techniques work best on monsters that survive long
enough for you to lay down a bed of coins, and where mobs can be easily
controlled.

When determining where to add skill points, remember that for every five levels
of Mesos Explosion, you get to explode two more bags and get a corresponding
increase in power. Start by getting 6 pickpocket, because level 1 pickpocket
just doesn't drop enough coins. Add points to both skills, giving Mesos
Explosion priority over Pickpocket. 11 pickpocket should be sufficient until you
get explosion to level 26. Look at the skill descriptions carefully and decide
for yourself how you will add these points - because this attack isn't
tremendously effective until both skills are at a high level, you really can't
go wrong.

Level 110-114: Max Mesos Guard

When maxed, Mesos Guard still guards 50% of the damage and lasts for two
minutes. It now converts 78% of the guarded damage to mesos. It really isn't
much different from Mesos Guard at level 6, so this is saved for next to last.
You can also max Mesos Guard before finishing off the last mastery on Mesos
Explosion, it is up to you.

Level 115-120: Extra skill points!

Chakra is a pretty useless skill. If you like, you can add Chakra until you can
reliably heal yourself to full health, or max Shield Mastery. I don't know what
else to do with these points, so I guess it'll be up to you. I am adding my points to Chakra.

This concludes my Chief Bandit guide. I certainly enjoyed writing it, and I hope
it proves useful to you. It's my way of giving back to the bandit community -
the majority of the bandits (especially STR bandits) that I've come across are
just the best people around.