So first and foremost, I'm not trying to dump on this game's PvP. So if at any point you read my post and think I'm just ranting, understand that this is not a rant it is a learning experience. I'm just concerned that it's not what I was thinking it would be. I can confidently say, I don't think it's the type of PvP i'll enjoy. But there may be hope for me regarding that, as I really want to enjoy it. That's what this post is about! I would like veteran players who have their feet firmly dipped in the pvp ocean to answer me truthfully and fairly! Your answers to my questions will quite literally influence my decision to treat BDO as just a PvE game or some parts PvP as well!

So like the name says, I just recently got to lvl 60, meaning I was able to experience Solare for the first time. I had high hopes for it because up until that point, I have always figured my massive distaste for this game's PvP was due to the fact that my gs and lvl were the reasons I didn't like it. Most of my PvP experience has come from the battlefield on a trial character because my main character has tuvala which seems to be crappier than the arsha given to trials. Though if we're being honest, playing on the trial netted me the same results I was expecting to have on my main character in the battlefield, ie getting facerolled in less than 3 seconds by literally every player that hit me. For that reason, I stopped doing all PvP and focused on getting to 60 so that I could participate in Solare, which I read equalizes gear so everyone is on equal playing field.

Well...I didn't die immediately at least, but new concerns certainly came to mind...

Prior to my first experiences in Solare, I chalked BDO PvP up as just a SA/Invi "blink" fest where players aren't really doing anything strategically, just spamming said iframe blinks and cc abilities until they get lucky and land a cc on enemy player, and then proceed to faceroll in one combo. Players like me who's gs is crap can't even dent whom have high gs and our cc seems to just get resisted in every case. I've watched players fight many times in the battlefield and I have fought many players who were also trial characters. I was able to experience winning and losing(against other trial players), and this is what I've seen, and what I've done. Basically, every fight seems to consist of moving around with the speed of flies with SA/invi and spamming cc until you get that lucky hit, then combo that lucky hit into a fatal combo. Regardless, I was hoping Solare would be different, since everyone is equalized.

Here are my experiences in Solare:

I noticed players can't faceroll in 3 seconds. Players would only die if the entire team was comboing them at the same time. I had the fortunate luck of testing the damage of my character in Solare against an enemy player whom was afk at the enemy team's starting area. I was able to test my combo on them and to my surprise I could barely get them to 75% hp in one combo, even though they were just standing there, lmao. I'm confident my combo was viable as I learned it from a youtube guide on my class. That being said, didn't even come close to killing that player by myself even though they were literally defenseless. However, when getting jumped, people seemed to die quickly. On another note, the SA/invis blink fest seemed to be ever present as it was in the battlefield. It seems so difficult to land a cc due to all the iframes and blinking present. And it seems classes with grab have the advantage, due to the fact that it can persist through guard and SA and you just need to be "near" the player and facing them when you do the grab. Most of my deaths were caused by a player who grabbed me and then their entire team would obliterate my graphics card with their ability's special effects...

So to summarize my experiences: BDO PvP seems like the type where you just spam quick movements and iframes together with cc abilities until you land a lucky cc hit on the player. Outside of Solare, GS and lvl seem to make player skill obsolete. Inside Solare, coordination of attacks and player skill are more of a factor, but still outweighed by class inbalance, ie classes with more iframes vs classes with less and classes with grabs vs classes without.

My questions:

1. Is my description of BDO PvP accurate in a veteran player's opinion?

2. What do you guys think about the blink fest I mentioned where players seem to move around with the speed of flies? Is there anything I can do about it, or is it just how things are?

3. If I want to enjoy PvP, should I play a class with grabs and a lot of blink abilities, or all classes balanced, I just need to gitgud?

4. I would like to enjoy Solare, as it seems to be the only option for me to fairly participate in PvP without worrying about gear. Are there any advice you can giveto help me succeed in Solare more?

Thanks for all your advice in advance!

Solare and NW are your only semi-descent options for PvP. PA has thrown PvP into the trash for a while now and gets worse every year. Best bet is to just play what you like and hope RNG is on your side when fighting in Solare/NW.

Hi, to answer some of your questions above:
1. While some observations are true, I do not fully agree with the extent of it. Recent patches have elevated the role of gear heavily in uncapped PvP, so sadly that observation is pretty true, though player skill has shown to be able to overcome moderate gear differences (up to 50GS) when in the right setting. Class choice has always been a big influence too, since some classes simply have better tools to deal with some situations than others. And some of these tools are broken OP, but we dont talk about that xD. Level has no influence (aka below 1% change) on damage once youre above level 62 for the last passive. And even that passive is not too big of an effect overall.
Fast movement, blinking and super armor rotations are the name of the game in BDO, yes. But if players actually know what theyre doing, then this is not done simply to throw out CCs and hope to catch something, but rather to force the opponent to make mistakes (e.g. by applying debuffs, make them use their iframes to be grabbable, force them into a FG to avoid damage and then CC them behind it etc.). While for a newer player this may seem overwhelming, strategy is a large part of matchups, especially in AoS, when players know the skills and protections of their opponents. There are also other options for capped PvP other than AoS, where you have much less gear disparity and are able to take and win fights even with tuvala only.
Also, on your andecdote with only doing 25% health in a combo: While I dont doubt you did a combo as shown by another player, unless either your gear/addons are unfitting for damage, or the other player was in a full DP build, this should not happen even in AoS. Most classes can at least combo 50% of the HP, so it may just be a matter of executing the combo correctly, having the right build, the right pre-buffs/debuffs and general positioning that made inflicting damage harder. All of this are things you learn with experience though, and you still have a lot of room to grow.

2. Kind of simply how things are. If you get to know the different classes better, you also learn how to live with their blinks, and know where players are likely to move (e.g. how far a woosa can go in a blink compared to a sorc). Again, mostly a matter of experience.

3. Classes are far from balanced. But the class you want to play depends on what kind of content you want to do, and what kind of playstyle you enjoy. Personally, I just love Awa DK so much that I refuse to reroll and rather live with my bottom tier performance in AoS than betray her for another class. But if you care about AoS, then having a grab is a big advantage in fights, as you are always able to get a CC on the enemy (whereas a 3 man non grab team can have big troubles with certain classes). Blink abilities are good, but if the class matchup is not advantageous or you dont know other classes well enough to exploit their openings with your blinks, the advantage there fades quickly. Good damage, good engage/disengage movement, grabs, and tankiness are generaly what you want to look for in an AoS class. You can take a look at the recent rankings to see which classes seem to excel there (it will get pretty obvious, though there have been at least some nerfs to one of them)

4. Like I said, you can also take part in other capped gear game modes, like capped NWs, capped siege, seasonal PvP, and player hosted tournaments in trial gear. But if you want to succeed in AoS then all I can really tell you is to decide on one class, and simply practice. Maybe reach out to people in your guild or your class discord, and let them tell you strategies and tips on how to move and predict enemies. Watch videos of content creators on your class that play AoS (a lot of streams of longer sessions are still up from players) and see what they are doing, how they are communicating with their teammates etc. And of course, learn how to play with the AoS rules. Learn V sniffing (predicting where players go when Ving), when to get map buffs, how to engage in certain maps, what classes can exploit map terrains, when running away is the best option, how to get snipe damage to turn the tide in the last second, how to avoid getting V sniffed yourself etc. You will learn all that in time. BDO pvp is not really something you get good at overnight, there is quite some effort included in it, as you really want to learn your own kit and possibilities, as well as the strengths and weaknesses of others.

PvP is fairly gimmicky.  First cc wins

Not a vet but here is my input.

1. Accurate if you don't know what you're doing. When I was brand new, I thought the same. But if you watch high tier AOS players like Vert, JustinKace, Akari, Flowers, Baldsquadron (j/k) and others. You will notice that they know what they're doing and are very precise. Its not a spamfest of randomly thrown iframes and CC's, they know exactly where they're going and who they're going to hit. They also know your animations for your abilities and will use it to catch you. 

2. Don't spam it like a monkey unless you're playing a musa or a zerker. Maybe a striker. Use it carefully to manage it, if you randomly throw it around then you will always end up out of stamina and end up getting caught.

3. So here's the thing. No MMO has everything balanced. Classes get nerfed and buffed, meta shifts. So my suggestion would be to play what you really enjoy. There's some videos that give introductions to all classes. I think that the streamer bluesquadron has a list of those. Find what you enjoy and play that. If you shift based on meta, you will keep jumping around. Classes aren't balanced. Personally, I think zerker, musa and striker are the most OP (for newbie players to pickup) so if you dont' care about what you enjoy and want an advantage, however minor. Then pick one of those 3. They're great everywhere. 

4. There really is no advice to getting better other than practicing and playing. If you can find some guildmates who are old players to give you advice, you will improve really quickly. But in hindsight, you're basically copying what they know and you won't really innovate yourself but end up being a copy. So its upto you, whatever you choose.

In conclusion, uncapped open world pvp is slowly being exterminated in this game. Because of griefers who went overboard with it. Like the blackrobe NPC that could send you anyone's location at any time. One sided decs. Karma system where you could randomly keep killing people and then re-farming your karma back in no time.

They are slacking off at releasing new content after removing the Open World uncapped PVP. But if they can pick up that slack then it'd be just fine I think. They just need to fill that void and figure out a way to make pve more interesting instead of being circles for hours and finding a way to bring back or replace open world pvp without people griefing others to oblivion.

If you really want to try PvP in BDO, I really recommend you join a PvP guild, because they can offer community support with tips and suggesstions on how to improve your PvP game.

It's probably the best advice given the state of PvP and the many complaints I've read about it.

Disclosure:  I don't PvP, but that's what I would do if I wanted to.

Thank you all so much for your replies! You have given me much insight!