IceStorm Wizard

varetmarkush · September 2013

Guys i would use some ideas on my build.
It is a cold based (+ little storm) drow damage dealer (or at least it is intended to be)

So, the powers i use are:

At will: 1st Chill cloud
2nd Ray of frost

Spell Mastery: always Chill strike
Other encounters: 1st Sudden storm or Shield (if faced a powerful boss)
2nd Conduit of ice
3rd Shard of endless avalanche or Time steal (if need con-troll)

Daily: 1st Ice knife
2nd Ice storm or Arcane singularity (if in PT)

My features are: Storm spell and Eye of the storm

Feats:

Heroic:
Weapon mastery 3/3
Toughness 3/3
Fight on 5/5
Battlewise 1/3
Blighting power 3/3
Learned spellcaster 5/5

Paragon:

Thaumaturge:
Tempest magic 5/5
Malevolent surge 5/5
Frozen power transfer 5/5
Elemental empowerment 5/5
Asailing force 1/1

Oppressor:
Bitter cold 5/5

Renegade:
Reaper's touch 5/5

So what do you think?

grimah · September 2013

i hate wizards using icestorm, on any of my characters.

varetmarkush · September 2013

Yes it is annoying when it lands on you.. Nevertheless it works great for me when i solo..
Any suggestions on my feats?

umaeko · September 2013

Ah... in dungeons, powers with lots of knock-back like Ice Storm are inconvenient for other party members, especially when you were just about to do some Area-of-Effect attack that suddenly ends up zapping through nothing as a result.

Given this, I think that's what Grimah meant about 'hating' wizards using ice storm. He probably wasn't talking about being on the receiving end in PvP.

varetmarkush · September 2013

OK then..
Yes, i know.. in dungeons i use singularity

megamousegw · September 2013

I run a renegade build that I found. Some players hate when I use repel to get rid of the mobs that get too close to me and the healer, but I try to keep our healer alive because if they drop the group is doomed.

kerrovitarra · September 2013

Try using OF next time. Or steal time, SotEA. Or simply kill mobs before they can harm.

grimah · September 2013

yea, sorry. hating might be too strong a word. but it is terribly annoying. pve wise. because it slows down dps when everything is all over the place. As well as being annoying for my GF (controlling), gwf/cw (aoeing).

You could go for it, going pure ice for style. But i dont think im the only one who will be a bit peeved if you kept using ice storm.

rortie · September 2013

megamousegw wrote: »

I run a renegade build that I found. Some players hate when I use repel to get rid of the mobs that get too close to me and the healer, but I try to keep our healer alive because if they drop the group is doomed.

So many runs I have been on have failed because people don't do this. Well done.

Whether you use Repel to do it or simply switch targets to whatever is trying to bundle your healer, do it! kerrovitara's comment may not always work if the group isn't as skilled and well equipped as (s)he probably is. Repel's shorter than most cooldown can make the difference.

varetmarkush · September 2013

What do you think is better as i depend mostly on cold dmg.. storm spell of chilling presence?

exarkun007 · September 2013

If you are doing mass AoE damage, they will be coming after you, not the healer. Then you've done your job AND sped the run up.

fondlez · September 2013

exarkun007 wrote: »

If you are doing mass AoE damage, they will be coming after you, not the healer. Then you've done your job AND sped the run up.

^^this.

Any Cleric can keep themselves alive long enough for you take aggro off them with aoe damage, if you really are trying to make sure they keep alive.

There is no need to slot specialist spells like Repel all the time just for the offchance you get one pack that slips through.

Also, I cannot think of any spell in the game that is more of a group dps and group control loss than Ice Storm. It really is that bad in general, including upsetting others of your own class, especially the more geared and experienced is the group.

For highly undergeared groups, and if you play a tanky CW AND you are the only CW in the group, or the content is trivial (like a skirmish), then there is a small argument that it is additional control and a quick way to gain aggro in a large area. But otherwise, expect to get a lot of hate if you use Ice Storm in group PvE routinely ...

I would say that Ice Storm in PvP is a very fun and effective spell though!

If it were not for the long casting time (given it is a centered aoe), I would use it all the time.

exarkun007 · September 2013

Let me add, using singularity also slows the group down. Shard and sudden storm don't affect anything in it, and that's probably 3/4 of your AoE damamge right there. Maybe one to group them up, but after that, OF is much better, given the current stacking effect of HV.

tickdoff · September 2013

exarkun007 wrote: »

Let me add, using singularity also slows the group down. Shard and sudden storm don't affect anything in it, and that's probably 3/4 of your AoE damamge right there. Maybe one to group them up, but after that, OF is much better, given the current stacking effect of HV.

I run my CW with both OF and AS in my daily slots. I also have entangling force in mastery. Dropping a AS then following up with EF is a great combo, and if you wait to use SS or SoteA untill right as the mobs start the "reverse gravity" effect then the spell will do it's proper damage right as they are hitting the ground. Takes a couple attempts to get the timing down, but it is effective. And as a bonus, once you have hit them with EF and SS then you are just about ready to use OF on all of them for even more CC goodness.

IceStorm Wizard

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