The Beastmaster

Like all classes in Rift,
the Warrior has a vast amount of diversity in
the available souls within the calling. One of the most intriguing is
that of the Beastmaster, a powerful melee class that derives much of
its capability from the bond shared with their combat pet. The
Beastmaster can be a focal point of your build if you want to create a
melee support class or a nice bit of flavor to round out other more
traditional warrior builds.

Pros

Great soloist Can offtank adds and handle multiple mob pulls easily Offers group enhancements Easy access to armor and mitigation buffs early in the tree

Cons

Lack of diversity as prime soul Lower mobility than most other warrior souls Lack of PvP talents Dual wield itemization is lacking in certain level ranges

Overview

Fans of the Beastmaster in FFXI and the Beastlord in EQ1 will instantly
be drawn to this soul, and with a bit of planning will find they can
recreate that playstyle with ease. Masters of avoidance and
hard hitting dual strike melee attacks, the Beastmaster is a wonderful
pet class that offers tons of upside.

Solo Play

Beastmasters are master soloists, bringing their own backup with them
in the form of a summoned spirit companion. Digging deep into
the tree you will find a slew of potency and survivability upgrades, as
well as some nice statistical enhancements. With a nice combo
heal that effects the caster and the pet equally, the Beastmaster can
handle the unexpected add with ease.

Group Play

Beastmasters bring quite a bit of utility to a group, via enhancements,
buffs and damage. While there are better choices for damage
output and group buffing, the Beastmaster is a great utility infielder
that can handle both duties.

Pairs Best With

Champion

The Champion is the social butterfly of the warrior calling, fitting in
anywhere and everywhere. At a measly 4 points into the tree you can
pick up a 5% damage increase with Soldier’s Bearing, a root side
bargain that packs a huge punch.  Other damage modifiers
abound in the tree, but players looking for a dual wield playstyle will
need to navigate around the many two-handed talents in the tree.

Warlord

This pairing is one
suggested at the in game tooltip and one that makes sense for most
players.


The Warlord adds a measure of survivability and group enhancement that
is a perfect complement to several builds and gives the Beastmaster the
increased armor and avoidance they will need to stay viable. At 6
points into the tree you gain Call to Battle, a scalable battle cry
that buffs a groups attack and spell power by 6 as well as unearthing a
scaling health buff and a hefty dodge increase in the root system.

Riftblade

My personal favorite pairing for a
third soul of a
Beastmaster is the Riftblade. The Riftblade adds elemental damage and a
couple
ranged spells that give me the feeling of playing a Beastlord from EQ
again.
You can gain a decently powerful punch with as little as 11 points
spent in
this tree, gaining spell damage enhancements, dodge increases and a
nice snare
ability. One of the coolest upsides is found 2 points into the root in
the form
of Fiery Burst, a triggered ability that adds a DoT to weapon damage
and is off
the global cooldown timer.