Carbuncle Pulling: Guide by Kajiwht

Category:Guides
== Carbuncle Pulling guide by Kajiwht ==
Many summoners think they know how to work Carbuncle, sure I know how to do it, it's just assault and release or let it die. WRONG!!!!
There's more to it then it seems, have you ever asked why a simple carby pull can sometimes link, why can't you carby pull in dynamis or with NMs?
This guide will give you a tour through some advanced summoning info.
1st of all, what is carby pulling? People usually use an avatar to pull when there's big linking possibilities as it usually does the trick.
A Summoner or /SMN can just send his avatar (doesn't have to be carby) to assault a mob, and /Release or let it die. 
It's most useful during exp parties and places like The Eldieme Necropolis where linking is very possible.
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First we need to understand what are the advantages:
- Using the /Assault command does not cause Sneak to wear off, allowing the SMN to pull mobs without getting agroed by sound agroing mobs.
- Mobs that agro carby will not share their agro with the puller allowing the "link free" pulls.
Now the Disadvantages:
- Carbuncle is a magic when cast, so magic agro mobs will attack you if you're careless.
- Carbuncle will auto-attack anything that agros the summoner, so if you walk around with carby in Sea, it will attack the mobs that agro but don't attack unless attacked, the mob will attack you once carbuncle dies because carby did damage to it.
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== Understanding agro ==
I learned this in Davoi while killing some mobs for fun. I was killing an orc but got linked, after I killed the orc... the other one that linked just lost hate and depopped... I kept wondering... why?
There's a thing I like to call pure carby link, you can try it yourself go to Sauromugue Champaign attack a goblin near Jeuno zone with carby, link a goblin (with the mob hitting carby) kill the goblin you initially attacked, and then run around linking every gob you meet. 
after that... release....
(Make sure you are high enough level to solo the gob and so carby can sustain enough damage)
The expected result if you do all right, is that mobs will have linked on carby and will not attack you when you release, that is the principle of carby pulling.
There are 2 situations:
When the summoner agros: if you agro, unless you run outside range you'll have the mob on you if carby dies.
When carbuncle agros: carby works like a little person, so if it dies all the agro that was on it will disappear except for the one you originally attacked.
Also there's the factor that allows SMNs to pull... the killing pause.
After a mob kills someone or after he loses agro/hate on someone he will stop and not agro/link for a while (unless he had hate/agro on someone else).
When carby dies the same happens, it would be as if someone sack pulled or got agroed and died. 
There's one exception though, the NMs. The notorious monsters will agro/link as soon as they lose hate/agro to the nearest person available which is what makes impossible to carby pull the traditional way.
Ok, we all know that.. but why do we sometimes get linked?
There are 4 possibilities:
1 - There's an NM among the mobs.
2 - Once carby died you lost hate on all the mobs except the one you originally attacked, but after, the mob that had hate on you linked another mob on the way back or after the killing cool down.
3 - The SMN got agro by some of the mobs.
4 - One of the mobs didn't link on carby and then linked the mob after you released.
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Okay, so how do we pull with carby then?
1 - Consider the distance between you and the mob, make sure the mob won't agro you after you release/carby dies.
2 - Make sure ALL the mobs near the target that can link, LINK, before you release or carby dies, you may try the strategy below also to make mobs agro carby.
3 - Make sure there are no mobs on the way back before you pull, or, instead of releasing or letting carby die right away, do a /Retreat so the mobs will link carby and then release it when it's close to the camp or safe from links on the way back.
4 - Be extra careful when the mob is a mage, or pet-controlling mob, as if it stops right after carby dies/release in the middle of the mobs after the "killing pause" is over, if mob is still there they will link.
5 - Careful with NMs.
6 - If you're popping an NM that agros to sound and links, Sneak before you pop it (e.g., mission pop NMs), this way you can avoid killing many mobs by doing that.
How to pull NMs among NMs with carby pull? e.g., Qulun Dome or Dynamis
There is a way to SAC PULL with carbuncle in a way that the summoner does not have to die.
How do you achieve such an amazing feat?
Remember what I said up there about pure carby linking? You can do the same in those cases.
The reason people can't carby pull in those situations is because when carby dies the NMs will link immediately to the mob you attacked.
So... how do you avoid that?
Make sure the mob you attacked is not among the mobs when carby dies.
Make sure you're not in alliance with people (or that they are not resting on the sack pull's path) then have a person ready to provoke the mob you are pulling.
Stay far... as far as possible... then send carby there (might want to use Titan with Earthen Ward for more safety), do assault, and then run like hell using retreat REALLY FAST, then have the person provoke the mob you assaulted with carby and remove it from the cluster of mobs.
When the mob is outside linking range and you are outside agro range (hopefully) release carby or let it die.
There... you have your own death-free sack pull carby.