Feature: Socketing

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One of the most confusing aspects of player-based choices is item reinforcement and the options that come with it. Sometimes, you have too little resources and too many characters to work on; You just don't want to end up wasting those resources on uninformed or poor choices. Here, I will give you some insight in making informed choices and knowing what to expect from my experience.

In this 5-part article, I cover-
So here's part 1 of 5

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Socketing

Put a Sock in it I say!
Socketing aka. Carding, is the act of reinforcing Armor parts with cards that are earned via dungeon drops, card boxes and other relevant reward media. This option is not available on accessories and any other item.

Till now, I still wonder when will they implement "Open Socket"

The number of sockets available depends on the Rarity level.
Rare - 1, Epic - 2, Relic - 3
In this case, this sword is of Rare level.

Note: Basics Banter
As a new default, all dungeon drops come with at least Rare level, so you are assured at least one socket from using those drops. To socket an armor, simply click on the "Sock" icon at the corner of the chosen armor piece, and the interface above will appear. When you click on the available sockets, this interface below shows you the relevant usable cards in your possession.

On further note: Keep a good stockpile of GP ready, as socketing on higher level equipment can be extremely costly at one go, especially if you're doing up an entire armor set all at once.

Cards I don't own... Actually, I sacrificed most of them to the Card Fusion gimmick.

For the express purpose of browsing, it is advisable for all your cards to be collated under one character, this allows you to see the complete choices vs the cards in your possession. Make no mistake that this will be a tedious process to go through, but the logistical management will make things a hell lot easier in future. BUT THAT'S NOT ALL!

Now to find that Berkas car.... oh shit

Once the selection is made, the next problem is actually identifying the exact cards you were looking at, and transferring the required cards over to the needy character via Warehouse. This could get really tricky (and frustrating) if you have a huge library, (and it's never in order (ノ ̄Д ̄)ノ彡┻┻)


Socket Removal
Also known as "uncarding", it is the reverse process of removing cards from your sockets, to free up space for new cards or to retrieve precious high-grade cards before disposal of an old armor piece.

So rare, yet so few...
But before that, you need the above Socket Gem(s) to execute a removal. The number of gems required to remove any card depends upon the level of the equipment in question (Not the card grade). This can get pretty costly with late-game Lv75-80 armors costing 24-30 gems per socket removal action.

Currently armors around the Lv72- Lv80 bunch is set at 10-12 gems per socket.

Because the removal action costs that much, imagine if you had to deal with an entire set of armor. It is for this reason most players do not socket their armor until they achieve "Late-game" status with their characters (varying from player to player). For the casual player, they may start with Lv72 - 75 armors using low-grade cards that they have no qualms sacrificing. The high-grade cards are usually reserved for a future investment such as Seal Breaker sets for the cash-payers; Event Armor sets or Phantom Phoenix sets for the most of non-cash payers.

Still, in conclusion, Socket Removal has no complications. It is a straight forward process with no repercussions.


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Here, we talk about the tried and true formula for Socketing equipment. As of now, "Critical" is king. A lot of raw power is derived from this combined value of Rate and Damage. In descending order of superiority, this is the general consensus-
  • Critical Strike Chance (Rate)* / Critical Attack Damage*
  • MP Regen
  • Special Attack
  • Attack
  • All other stats
  • *Which one is more important depends on the character attack style. Players should assess on their own what they desire from the individual character and card accordingly. Full Rate? Full Damage? Balance? There is no perfect formula for this, only preference.

There are a few things players should note about their card selection. Beforehand, I will assume that you are following the recommendations, and shall omit card types that will not matter.
  • Depending on the card stock you possess, these are just averages for the casual player. The range is too wide to determine an accurate average.
  • Assuming you have Relic equipment with 3 sockets.

Helmet
Vitality Cards (~110HP p/card)

**MP Regen Cards (2.15% p/card)
Gets you about an extra 330 - 390 HP

**Gets you an extra 6.45% MP Regen
Upper Armor - Mantle
MP Regen Cards (~3.5% p/card)With better cards of  ~5.5% each, you can get ~16.5% on each piece of armor. A combined total of ~33%.
Lower Armor - Shoes
MP Regen Cards (~3.5% p/card)Same as above. But note this: The cards usable by U.Armor/Mantle pair and this pair differs. It is wise to check on the availability of the relevant cards before starting a socketing session.
Weapon - Gloves
Critical Rate  
(~2.5% p/card)
Critical Damage (~18% p/card)
As mentioned, the distribution depends on the player's preference. You can get a combined 6-socket total of ~15% to Rate or ~132% to Damage. Or simply split 3-3 each.
  • I personally favour socketing Rate on gloves as it is a constant factor even with Weapon Change. Letting the critical damage output change instead by socketing Damage on weapons is more appealing to me. So I favour the 3-3 approach for all my characters with equal ability.
  • **This option is only available with Void Patrol cards, which gives 2.15% MP Regen each.

The right choices in socketing can easily raise a character to S+ or SS status. That's because the recommendations above (with the exception of Vitality) contribute to the values of "Total Attack" (TA); Anything that factors into a character's ability to deliver damage will increase TA, which then determines the level of your Rank. And unlike Property Resetting which can get really random, Socketing is a direct additional input of the most useful stats into already set equipment.

The 5 major stats are-
  • Critical Strike Chance
  • Critical Attack Damage
  • MP Regen
  • Special Attack
  • Attack

For added info: (Approximates +- 1000)
  • 45000 TA - SS
  • 33000 TA - S+
  • 27000 TA - S
  • 24000 TA - S-
  • 21000 TA - A+
  • 18000 TA - A
  • 16400 TA - A-

However, do note that SS rank is only of importance if you wish to challenge Berkas' Lair, along with being at Lv85. Beyond that, Rank is simply a gauge, a form of boasting if you will and how much you can deck your character out. Personal skill is not part of the rank formula ;)


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