Best Icewind Boons for a CW?

yethens · May 2014

I would appreciate if someone could tell me what are the best boons in this new campaign for a CW. Right now I have to choose between 'Weathering the Storm' (250 aoe resists) and Encroaching Tactics (250 combat advantage) and I just don't know which one would be better for me

. So I need some advise if you please.

zebular · May 2014

I went with the combat advantage as my main mage (Old Zeb) is down the renegade path and procs combat advantage. I'm also specced to be close-quarters so I often get behind my target to always be in combat advantage. Since, as a mage, we never want to be in a splat anyway, I didn't go with aoe resist. I can see how that may be more beneficial in PvP though.

gilinea · May 2014

I've recently started working on the campaign content, mostly just as a way to get XP to level up some of my spare companions. I've unlocked the tiers for several of the boons, but can't decide what might actually be useful to me.

I play pretty much exclusively solo. If there's a Call To Arms, I've run those a few times, but other than that I avoid any team-only content. My wizard uses the original paragon path, the one focused on ice and storm powers. Other than that, I doubt I have much of a "build" in any min/max sense. I've gotten the best level 60 purple quality gear I can afford, which means I'd need about another 1500 gearscore to go to Icewind Dale.

Mainly, I can't tell if it would be better to have slightly higher defensive stats, or if I should just get the attack related ones. The bonuses are small enough that I'm not even sure it matters either way, to be honest. Although it's also likely that my current armor is junk enough that I won't have to worry about diminishing returns, even if it is purple quality.

postagepaid · May 2014

Bear in mind the gearscore system uses cryptic maths to work stuff out so ahouldnt ever be more than a rough guide to the content you can do. More often than not upgrading an enchant will not register unless you take the item off and wear it again. Getting some purples from the dread ring or sharandar and enchanting to rank 5 should be sufficient to get you into icewind as thats where my hr is gearwise and they got the quest no bother at all, even if that gear is just a vomitting of stats.

Not really any solo content in the new module as the zone itself is a blend of gw2 and ff14 random events that pop up around the map with a roving mob going around them while zonechat is infested with pvpers bragging, taunting or moaning. The "pvp" quests are only pvp by the designated area and you can ride in, do them and leave Between module3 here and the undine campaign doing a bad moba clone I have to wonder if they ever played the games they're obviously taking ideas from.

My wizard stayed with ice as well as for me there was no way of finding out what the other spec was like without installing the test client. I've built them on the theory that you kill mobs before they kill you so boons have been offensive with lifesteal. Their recovery is fairly high to work with aoe based spells to allow for a very regular daily power use. Only time I run into trouble used to be when the latency went high enough to rubberband my evasive blinks back into big hits. As long as you can stay mobile you should be able to clear the biggins instance solo as well with relative ease.

Now however they've done some stupid stuff with the graphics and I have to also contend with fighting mobs that I cant actually see as the game fades them out of view for some really bad design choice. It looks to be a similar thing to the way STO reduces visuals from weapon fire but with actual mobs instead.

marduk6sic6 · May 2014

AOE boon is nice for bosses I think. CA boon prolly better for pvp

gertrude4life · May 2014

I haven't been playing long, so what I say probably shouldn't be taken as gospel, but my 60 CW solos a lot, and even in the new content, although it appears you get credit for helping with heroic events, in a party or not. I have about a 14.5k gear score with not yet pvp type gear. What I did to increase the score was to put higher enchants in my gear. As far as boons, though, I try to fill in the holes in my stats with the boons. Anyway, take a look at your enchants. You may be able to easily increase your score that way without having to buy/earn new gear.

gilinea · May 2014

Thank you for the replies. But I should probably specify that I'm not really all that concerned with Icewind Dale. I'm not really interested in team content, and I don't PVP. The whole Icewind area sounds like it largely consists of one or the other. Which is fine, and I'm glad it's there for people who like that kind of content.

I was mostly curious about general PVE, or soloing the open world areas and lairs in the previous two campaign areas. I mentioned my low gearscore more to indicate loosely where my stats are. The bonus from the boons is only 250 points to a given stat (or 125 split between two) which doesn't seem like a lot compared to what the Elite team content can reward. Basically, I'm curious if the boons provide enough of a bonus (combined with my garage sale gear) that it would even matter which one I pick.

doomspell123 · May 2014

The boons will help you, they may not seem much if you look at them 1 boon at a time, but when you get 5 of them for example, that's 250X5=1250 extra stats. that's more than you're getting from enchanting your gear with rank 4s to say the least.

Your GS doesnt specify anything regarding your stats, 250 defense give as much GS as you get from 250 power or armor pen, deflect or whatever, that's why people usually talk stats when parsing more than GS or at least they should.

yethens · May 2014

I don't do PvP but I thought CA was also very good for PvE...

Am I right?

shurato2099 · May 2014

I went with the AoE boon because Biggrin's Tomb has a -lot- of AoE spam.

gilinea · May 2014

I'm not sure I understand. What is parsing?

zebular · May 2014

gilinea wrote: »

I've recently started working on the campaign content, mostly just as a way to get XP to level up some of my spare companions. I've unlocked the tiers for several of the boons, but can't decide what might actually be useful to me.

I play pretty much exclusively solo. If there's a Call To Arms, I've run those a few times, but other than that I avoid any team-only content. My wizard uses the original paragon path, the one focused on ice and storm powers. Other than that, I doubt I have much of a "build" in any min/max sense. I've gotten the best level 60 purple quality gear I can afford, which means I'd need about another 1500 gearscore to go to Icewind Dale.

Mainly, I can't tell if it would be better to have slightly higher defensive stats, or if I should just get the attack related ones. The bonuses are small enough that I'm not even sure it matters either way, to be honest. Although it's also likely that my current armor is junk enough that I won't have to worry about diminishing returns, even if it is purple quality.

I merged your thread with a similar one.

postagepaid · May 2014

Combat advantage is hit or miss when soloing in so far as it relies on other stuff to allow CA to exist on the thing chewing your face off or having someone elses face being the chewtoy. Companions that are tanky/threat based have a nasty tendency of dying or not holding the threat if you're aoe heavy.

Icewind grouping is as loose as you want it to be. You can either make a group and roam as a pack or bounce around the encounters yourself an find yourself fighting alongside others anyway.

Best Icewind Boons for a CW?

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