Practice. I can swap out powers in about 5 seconds. Point my horse (or character) in generally the right direction. Hit "T" to autorun. Pull up power menu while autorunning and hope you can swap all the powers before you run off the edge
It's a game within a game.
4 powers in 5 sec (wow) while 2 of them are not even on the same page/need to scroll and search. If is true in that time your char will move only 20 - 25 meters, so run off the edge will not be a problem
Just act like it is a T2 and you can't get hit from any mob, and focus on rotations.
How you do that when almost every control resist mob that you aggro runs 200% faster then you, jumps across the room or even teleports to you in less than 1 sec ? So you cannot escape or dodge more than 2 times in a row before you die or someone takes away the aggro provided that during this time you do not attack him again, only dodge. Оr you want to say - do not aggro them? It is twice as bad on ranged elites/minibosses who have nearly invisible attack(some tiny spears with no visual effect) which they perform less then 1-2 secs after you aggro them and then jump all over you if still alive. Any advices ?
I am following this guide, but you removed the gear section, and i havent seen by inspecting a spellstome control wizard with lifesteal they all go: power, critical strike and armor penetration.
All the unique items i have seen dont have lifesteal. Please Advice
I am following this guide, but you removed the gear section, and i havent seen by inspecting a spellstome control wizard with lifesteal they all go: power, critical strike and armor penetration.
All the unique items i have seen dont have lifesteal. Please Advice
Hi Iron, i d like to ask why did you pick Rapid thaw(400 Rec) over Sleet skills(+2% CritSev). Using vorpal ench isn´t CritSev better? Especially with Spell Twisting. There aren´t many options to stack CritSev.
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ironzerg79Member, Neverwinter Moderator, NW M9 PlaytestPosts: 4,942Arc User
edited May 2015
2% crit severity, especially when you're stacking other sources of crit severity, is actually not much at all. I don't think either feat is going to make much of a difference, so if you prefer the +2% crit severity, go for it.
How you do that when almost every control resist mob that you aggro runs 200% faster then you, jumps across the room or even teleports to you in less than 1 sec ? So you cannot escape or dodge more than 2 times in a row before you die or someone takes away the aggro provided that during this time you do not attack him again, only dodge. Оr you want to say - do not aggro them? It is twice as bad on ranged elites/minibosses who have nearly invisible attack(some tiny spears with no visual effect) which they perform less then 1-2 secs after you aggro them and then jump all over you if still alive. Any advices ?
Use your chills to slow down the mobs. I don't know of any mobs in T2s (excluding the Blademasters charge - which itself is low damage but leaves you vulnerable to a one shot or spiders that can be easily dodged) that you can't outrun by utilizing IT. Also in Renegade spec, I personally use RoF as one of my at wills so you can slow an individual mob quickly. The real danger in T2s comes from the Archers/Snipers/Huntsman who use ranged attacks and must be dealt with first using CC/focused DPS.
For the ranged mobs, if you are opening, hit them quick & immediately dodge. Practice a bit, and their first attack will hit you during your dodge immunity. You can then drop IT on them and also dodge their second attack as well (their attacks are usually fired at the same time). Get your timing right and you can get a Steal Time off before the 3rd attack. If your team is doing it's job, you shouldn't need to dodge them a 3rd time as they will be dead or CCed. It's not really feasible to carry players in T2s currently, so everyone in the party needs to be on their game.
Regarding Crit, I am sitting just about 62% crit without buffs. Add 5% to that on the first crit due to feats, and additional crit from buffs/potions/Chaos Nexus). All of my offensive slots are Radiants, I am using the LM belt (no Charisma), and none of my artifacts are beyond legendary (though a couple are up around 600 points or so of stats (vs 500 at barely legendary).
I do have the companion specific power/crit/arm pen rings/belt (Ioun Stone of Might), seal gear, and legendary artifact equipment (LM set).
There was another post I was going to reply to, but not sure what page it was on.
Someone asked if thaum could be a better dps tree.
My answer would be no.
This exact topic came up in a dungeon run a few weeks back when I was in a Thaum build. Thaum is focused on personal DPS. Rene is primarily focused on Group DPS.
If you have a Thaum & a Rene in the same party, and they are comparably geared/skilled, the Thaum may well come out higher on Paingiver, but that is not as telling as it might seem. Thaum will receive the benefits of 5% more crit from the Rene + CA bonus from the Rene + Chaos Magic bonus from the Rene + all of the Thuam DPS buffs.
Without the Rene buffs, Thaum is really a lesser DPS tree in general. Thaum can stack a higher % damage increase than Rene, but the Crit bonuses from Rene + Chaos Magic overcome it.
beckylunaticMember, NW M9 PlaytestPosts: 14,231Arc User
edited May 2015
It's updated insofar as Ironzerg has had time to update it (grats on the new little one, Zerg). Seems to be pretty clearly marked which sections are current and which are pending.
ironzerg79Member, Neverwinter Moderator, NW M9 PlaytestPosts: 4,942Arc User
edited May 2015
Yeah, also got a bit distracted with the Paladin. Our guild needed so help at the top end with healing, so I figured I'd get a second toon up to speed so I wasn't being selfish by ONLY bringing a DPS toon to the table. Healing is fun...but my first love is still the CW. This last weekend I put a lot more hours back into her, and I'm really starting to a good feeling on Module 6 to the point where I feel comfortable talking about how to do stuff
To the first question, the build is up to date as far as feat, powers and suggested boons. Pets and gear are NOT up to date, but not much has changed. My loadout now is the Air and Fire Archons, the Blink Dog, Intellect Devourer, and the Zhentarim Warlock. I switched from my augment chicken to the Zhentarim Warlock pet with Perfect Bonding Runestones, and I really like the results. I also have in the stable the Cantakerous Mage and Will o'Wisp for extra Control Bonus, the Sylph for CC reduction (like on the Lostmauth Fight) and the Acolyte of Kelemvor for my solo HE pet (huge lifesteal bonus here). I really need to update the pet section to touch on all that.
Gearing, Armor Penetration and Critical Strike are way to go. Assuming you took the right boon, you need another 57% to be at the cap. Then it's stacking Critical hit, and taking what Power comes with you gear.
And back to the feats, I love Spell Twisting. After parsing a few runs in the T2s, it makes a substantial difference in overall damage and single target damage. I think Icy Veins is a trap feat. It looks so good, and it feels good in the open world, but it's terrible in dungeons. 15 feet is essentially melee range, and that's deadly in the T1 and T2 dungeons for CWs. I found with IV, I spent too much time trying to get close enough to use it, that I wasn't casting as much. And every second you spent NOT casting is a DPS loss. With the right power load out, you can stack 6 chills in mere seconds, so I would recommend avoiding IV at all costs.
So yeah...some thoughts. One day I'll get around to formally adding them to the guide
"Meanwhile in the moderator's lounge..."
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aulduronMember, NW M9 PlaytestPosts: 1,351Arc User
edited May 2015
I have no way to judge distance in game. What is the range of steal time, icy terrain or sudden storm?
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beatannierMember, NW M9 PlaytestPosts: 692Arc User
ironzerg79Member, Neverwinter Moderator, NW M9 PlaytestPosts: 4,942Arc User
edited May 2015
I've had thoughts of actually moving IT to tab so I can range target it, and then keeping CoI in a regular slot (because it's still great at proc'ing Storm Spell). Too bad the latest patch broke that.
I just feel like staying outside of that 15' range is more optimal for a CW these days, as you can't really stand in the middle of a pack of mobs and cast freely with impunity like you could back in the Module 5 days.
I've had thoughts of actually moving IT to tab so I can range target it, and then keeping CoI in a regular slot (because it's still great at proc'ing Storm Spell). Too bad the latest patch broke that.
I just feel like staying outside of that 15' range is more optimal for a CW these days, as you can't really stand in the middle of a pack of mobs and cast freely with impunity like you could back in the Module 5 days.
Anyone have thoughts on that?
I'm hoping that IT Rank4 gets fixed for a targeted location cast with the next patch. It's how I usually run.
Even with it broken I just go stand in the middle of a group and drop IT + COI. =/ Im hoping the tank is quick enough to pull agro. ;D
NW-DSQ39N5SJ - 'To Infinity, and BEYOND!' - Spelljammer Quest. Skyships, Indiana Jones moments NW-DC9R4J5EH - 'The Black Pearl' - Spelljammer! Phlo Riders and Space Orcs
Thanks for all the fish.
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darthpotaterMember, NW M9 PlaytestPosts: 1,259Arc User
I've had thoughts of actually moving IT to tab so I can range target it, and then keeping CoI in a regular slot (because it's still great at proc'ing Storm Spell). Too bad the latest patch broke that.
I just feel like staying outside of that 15' range is more optimal for a CW these days, as you can't really stand in the middle of a pack of mobs and cast freely with impunity like you could back in the Module 5 days.
Anyone have thoughts on that?
I have no problem staying in melee, maxing the effect of the spells for control and damage. The key is icy veins and shield (I have 105k HP too, having good gear helps). I use shield on a normal slot, and CoI on tab. Open with teleport for 1 sec immunity + icy terrain and everything is frozen (and 2xdmg from chilling pressence). When they unfreeze you can cast steal time or OF depending on the type of the mobs, and CoI every time is available. Archers are first target because they die fast with control spells and are very dangerous. Is easy to keep enemies perma controlled (except some elites).
Usually in 1 rotation everything is dead except elites, then the team helps taking them down.
If there is a tank, everything is easier, because he takes agro first, and if there are 2 CW, too. But playing a CW from range is far from optimal since ever. But that said I move a lot all time, keeping 10' from melee mobs, and positioning for CA even if I have nightmare wizardry. Its all about practice and know how the enemies act.
Steal time needs us to be near mobs too, so does sudden storm. With Icy terrain, those are the best AoE/DPS powers.
With right timing on powers/dodge and with Icy veins, I found myself having nice control and damage in T2s.
Steal Time has a 30' range. It's easy to stand near mobs and still catch the group in the AOE. And I've switched to Disintegrate instead of Sudden Storm now, because it seems like most pulls end up with one or two elite mobs left, versus a bunch of smaller ones.
I'll typically lead with CoI, and ST. And while the mobs are stunned, I'll jump in to drop IT, then jump back out. But by the time that happens, they already have plenty of chill stacks on them, so it makes using IV moot.
And you also have to consider with IV you're giving up Spell Twisting, which substantially cuts down the recharge time of your other spells, which in my opinion, nets you better control. Spell Twisting gives me 100% up time on CoI and IT, as well as many more casts of ST and Disintegrate.
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ironzerg79Member, Neverwinter Moderator, NW M9 PlaytestPosts: 4,942Arc User
edited May 2015
Darth, that's great. But you're giving up an encounter slot for shield to do that. I can't imagine that's give you optimal DPS. You also have to take time to close that gap to 15 feet, which is time you're not DPSing.
And more to the point, after the first couple seconds of a fight, everything is going to be stacked with chill, which again renders IV moot. Plus, it's useless in single target boss fights, whereas Spell Twisting is extremely powerful. Even in the T2 fights, IV is a bit useless, and you're not going to have the luxury of taking an extra second or two to close to within 15' to use IV. The adds spawn, and they need to die fast.
EDIT: Let me better frame my thought process here. The only things in this game that you should be optimizing for, in my opinion, is eGWD, eCC, and eToS. Everything else is pretty easy. Icy Veins might feel amazing when you're clearing trash, but no one has trouble clearing trash. It's the boss fights where people hit a brick wall.
I'll typically lead with CoI, and ST. And while the mobs are stunned, I'll jump in to drop IT, then jump back out. But by the time that happens, they already have plenty of chill stacks on them, so it makes using IV moot.
With IV, as soon as you cast IT, mobs are frozen. allowing me to DPS them with ST and SS. Usually trashes are dead after that. If they defreeze, just throw an encounter and they get frozen again.
And you also have to consider with IV you're giving up Spell Twisting, which substantially cuts down the recharge time of your other spells, which in my opinion, nets you better control. Spell Twisting gives me 100% up time on CoI and IT, as well as many more casts of ST and Disintegrate.
I already have 100% uptime of IT, lower cooldown on it is a waste. And considering at what speed some mobs are losing chill stacks, I doubt you could freeze them often without IV.
That's where we're gonna disagree and why I chose IV instead of spell twisting, Maybe I'll switch once control is less needed and when we'll be destroying everything again.
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darthpotaterMember, NW M9 PlaytestPosts: 1,259Arc User
edited May 2015
@Ironzerg
I agree with you 100% but: I did try Spell Twisting and Icy Veins, and in the current meta I preffer IV. Maybe in the next mod they tune down mobs or we get better gear, but for now I stay, because I dont run allways with guildies and very good geared players and sometimes with no tank. And IV makes the run much faster for all.
With Spell T. I have less DPS in the run (and more on the bosses) because with Icy terrain in melee, 2xdmg (from 6 stacks of chill) and OF, everything is dead except elites. If I dont use shield, I have 1 more encounter, but I end with less DPS because I cant get to melee where I maximize the damage and the control. Sometimes you get agro, and you die wo shield.
I allways focus my char with one thing in mind: Make the runs shorter. And this is what works better for me even with very low geared teams. And spell twisting is better, my first build in mod 6 was with that. But after trying both specs, this work better for me (and I am sure will change in future mods when damage reduction is not ignored my mobs armpen).
aulduronMember, NW M9 PlaytestPosts: 1,351Arc User
edited May 2015
Except for some boss fights, I really don't have a problem staying in melee range, if we have a good tank. This is without shield slotted. I lead with CoI, jump in for IT, SS, ST, then OF. Though I admit that I haven't done many T2s, outside of ToS.
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beckylunaticMember, NW M9 PlaytestPosts: 14,231Arc User
I just feel like staying outside of that 15' range is more optimal for a CW these days, as you can't really stand in the middle of a pack of mobs and cast freely with impunity like you could back in the Module 5 days.
Anyone have thoughts on that?
I would now say that it very much depends on what you want your CW to be able to do.
If your CW is going to end up standing in the middle of things because that's just how the gameplay goes... Icy Veins will help you stay alive, as I've found.
What I did do was spec my CW out of Icy Veins and into Spell Twisting, and I'm kicking myself over not doing this on preview first. "I'm sure it will be fine." Famous last words. While I'm sure it makes a huge amount of sense in a party in epic dungeons and when you've got your gear in a better place to control things for a shorter time while killing them faster, that additional control was apparently keeping my lowly CW alive while alone and being overrun by barbarians. Need for Mead felt like trying to do it on the SW; couldn't actually overcome 3 warriors at once, despite trying numerous powers, with and without Shield, etc. I'd get them down quite a lot but the repeated pummellings would do me in before any of them would actually die. I did do Dread Spire without issue though. The boss fight took a bit but it wasn't too scary; even got a greater mark.
Comments
4 powers in 5 sec (wow) while 2 of them are not even on the same page/need to scroll and search. If is true in that time your char will move only 20 - 25 meters, so run off the edge will not be a problem
How you do that when almost every control resist mob that you aggro runs 200% faster then you, jumps across the room or even teleports to you in less than 1 sec ? So you cannot escape or dodge more than 2 times in a row before you die or someone takes away the aggro provided that during this time you do not attack him again, only dodge. Оr you want to say - do not aggro them? It is twice as bad on ranged elites/minibosses who have nearly invisible attack(some tiny spears with no visual effect) which they perform less then 1-2 secs after you aggro them and then jump all over you if still alive. Any advices ?
All the unique items i have seen dont have lifesteal. Please Advice
Brutal enchantments in def slots.
Possibly Valindra artifact.
am I missing something?
yes, you are missing crit chance :P
More seriously, it's likely that they have heavy investment in CHA and are renegade (renegade gives 15%).
I'm ren, and in selecting only CHA and INT, it only increases the % by 1.5, nowhere near 70%.
Your sheet crit chance should be between 50-60%. It's like with huge amounts of crit stacking, you'd get close to 70% or more.
how huge is huge?
I've seen players with 12k crit stacked who are around 70%. I'm at 10k which has me at 52%
You need to go Intel/Charisma on your roll and get more Charisma from your Belt. I have 56% and less Crit rating (7K) than you.
Use your chills to slow down the mobs. I don't know of any mobs in T2s (excluding the Blademasters charge - which itself is low damage but leaves you vulnerable to a one shot or spiders that can be easily dodged) that you can't outrun by utilizing IT. Also in Renegade spec, I personally use RoF as one of my at wills so you can slow an individual mob quickly. The real danger in T2s comes from the Archers/Snipers/Huntsman who use ranged attacks and must be dealt with first using CC/focused DPS.
For the ranged mobs, if you are opening, hit them quick & immediately dodge. Practice a bit, and their first attack will hit you during your dodge immunity. You can then drop IT on them and also dodge their second attack as well (their attacks are usually fired at the same time). Get your timing right and you can get a Steal Time off before the 3rd attack. If your team is doing it's job, you shouldn't need to dodge them a 3rd time as they will be dead or CCed. It's not really feasible to carry players in T2s currently, so everyone in the party needs to be on their game.
I do have the companion specific power/crit/arm pen rings/belt (Ioun Stone of Might), seal gear, and legendary artifact equipment (LM set).
Someone asked if thaum could be a better dps tree.
My answer would be no.
This exact topic came up in a dungeon run a few weeks back when I was in a Thaum build. Thaum is focused on personal DPS. Rene is primarily focused on Group DPS.
If you have a Thaum & a Rene in the same party, and they are comparably geared/skilled, the Thaum may well come out higher on Paingiver, but that is not as telling as it might seem. Thaum will receive the benefits of 5% more crit from the Rene + CA bonus from the Rene + Chaos Magic bonus from the Rene + all of the Thuam DPS buffs.
Without the Rene buffs, Thaum is really a lesser DPS tree in general. Thaum can stack a higher % damage increase than Rene, but the Crit bonuses from Rene + Chaos Magic overcome it.
Neverwinter Census 2017
All posts pending disapproval by Cecilia
To the first question, the build is up to date as far as feat, powers and suggested boons. Pets and gear are NOT up to date, but not much has changed. My loadout now is the Air and Fire Archons, the Blink Dog, Intellect Devourer, and the Zhentarim Warlock. I switched from my augment chicken to the Zhentarim Warlock pet with Perfect Bonding Runestones, and I really like the results. I also have in the stable the Cantakerous Mage and Will o'Wisp for extra Control Bonus, the Sylph for CC reduction (like on the Lostmauth Fight) and the Acolyte of Kelemvor for my solo HE pet (huge lifesteal bonus here). I really need to update the pet section to touch on all that.
Gearing, Armor Penetration and Critical Strike are way to go. Assuming you took the right boon, you need another 57% to be at the cap. Then it's stacking Critical hit, and taking what Power comes with you gear.
And back to the feats, I love Spell Twisting. After parsing a few runs in the T2s, it makes a substantial difference in overall damage and single target damage. I think Icy Veins is a trap feat. It looks so good, and it feels good in the open world, but it's terrible in dungeons. 15 feet is essentially melee range, and that's deadly in the T1 and T2 dungeons for CWs. I found with IV, I spent too much time trying to get close enough to use it, that I wasn't casting as much. And every second you spent NOT casting is a DPS loss. With the right power load out, you can stack 6 chills in mere seconds, so I would recommend avoiding IV at all costs.
So yeah...some thoughts. One day I'll get around to formally adding them to the guide
You can find those values in Tooltips (note; they can change once slotted to correctly benefit from some feats, modifiers etc).
I just feel like staying outside of that 15' range is more optimal for a CW these days, as you can't really stand in the middle of a pack of mobs and cast freely with impunity like you could back in the Module 5 days.
Anyone have thoughts on that?
Steal time needs us to be near mobs too, so does sudden storm. With Icy terrain, those are the best AoE/DPS powers.
With right timing on powers/dodge and with Icy veins, I found myself having nice control and damage in T2s.
I'm hoping that IT Rank4 gets fixed for a targeted location cast with the next patch. It's how I usually run.
Even with it broken I just go stand in the middle of a group and drop IT + COI. =/ Im hoping the tank is quick enough to pull agro. ;D
NW-DC9R4J5EH - 'The Black Pearl' - Spelljammer! Phlo Riders and Space Orcs
Thanks for all the fish.
Usually in 1 rotation everything is dead except elites, then the team helps taking them down.
If there is a tank, everything is easier, because he takes agro first, and if there are 2 CW, too. But playing a CW from range is far from optimal since ever. But that said I move a lot all time, keeping 10' from melee mobs, and positioning for CA even if I have nightmare wizardry. Its all about practice and know how the enemies act.
Caturday Survivor
Elemental Evil Survivor
Undermontain Survivor
Mod20 Combat rework Survivor
Mod22 Refinement rework Survivor
Steal Time has a 30' range. It's easy to stand near mobs and still catch the group in the AOE. And I've switched to Disintegrate instead of Sudden Storm now, because it seems like most pulls end up with one or two elite mobs left, versus a bunch of smaller ones.
I'll typically lead with CoI, and ST. And while the mobs are stunned, I'll jump in to drop IT, then jump back out. But by the time that happens, they already have plenty of chill stacks on them, so it makes using IV moot.
And you also have to consider with IV you're giving up Spell Twisting, which substantially cuts down the recharge time of your other spells, which in my opinion, nets you better control. Spell Twisting gives me 100% up time on CoI and IT, as well as many more casts of ST and Disintegrate.
And more to the point, after the first couple seconds of a fight, everything is going to be stacked with chill, which again renders IV moot. Plus, it's useless in single target boss fights, whereas Spell Twisting is extremely powerful. Even in the T2 fights, IV is a bit useless, and you're not going to have the luxury of taking an extra second or two to close to within 15' to use IV. The adds spawn, and they need to die fast.
EDIT: Let me better frame my thought process here. The only things in this game that you should be optimizing for, in my opinion, is eGWD, eCC, and eToS. Everything else is pretty easy. Icy Veins might feel amazing when you're clearing trash, but no one has trouble clearing trash. It's the boss fights where people hit a brick wall.
With IV, as soon as you cast IT, mobs are frozen. allowing me to DPS them with ST and SS. Usually trashes are dead after that. If they defreeze, just throw an encounter and they get frozen again.
I already have 100% uptime of IT, lower cooldown on it is a waste. And considering at what speed some mobs are losing chill stacks, I doubt you could freeze them often without IV.
That's where we're gonna disagree and why I chose IV instead of spell twisting, Maybe I'll switch once control is less needed and when we'll be destroying everything again.
I agree with you 100% but: I did try Spell Twisting and Icy Veins, and in the current meta I preffer IV. Maybe in the next mod they tune down mobs or we get better gear, but for now I stay, because I dont run allways with guildies and very good geared players and sometimes with no tank. And IV makes the run much faster for all.
With Spell T. I have less DPS in the run (and more on the bosses) because with Icy terrain in melee, 2xdmg (from 6 stacks of chill) and OF, everything is dead except elites. If I dont use shield, I have 1 more encounter, but I end with less DPS because I cant get to melee where I maximize the damage and the control. Sometimes you get agro, and you die wo shield.
I allways focus my char with one thing in mind: Make the runs shorter. And this is what works better for me even with very low geared teams. And spell twisting is better, my first build in mod 6 was with that. But after trying both specs, this work better for me (and I am sure will change in future mods when damage reduction is not ignored my mobs armpen).
Caturday Survivor
Elemental Evil Survivor
Undermontain Survivor
Mod20 Combat rework Survivor
Mod22 Refinement rework Survivor
I would now say that it very much depends on what you want your CW to be able to do.
If your CW is going to end up standing in the middle of things because that's just how the gameplay goes... Icy Veins will help you stay alive, as I've found.
http://nw-forum.perfectworld.com/showthread.php?942671-Some-experiences-and-experiments-in-M6-solo-play&p=11091511&viewfull=1#post11091511
Neverwinter Census 2017
All posts pending disapproval by Cecilia