test content
Logo
What is the Arc Client?
Install Arc
My take on the DC as a Class
xippin
Member, Neverwinter Beta Users Posts: 0 Arc User
I should begin by saying, that I'm only level 47 so I do not have the "game changer" Astral Shield.
I love the Devoted Cleric, I have always preferred being a healer with tank as my second option. I view the DC as a Mitigation Control class with supplementary heals. Which seems to work out great. I think the biggest downfall of the DC is other players. Why? Simply put, people that tend not to play the DC tend not to understand the DC. I generally run with a CW for questing/dungeons and after much persuasion convincing him that he is not DPS, he finally agreed to try things my way, and things have gone immensely well ever since. Instead of focusing the boss, his job is solely to "Control" the mobs chasing/attacking me. When his primary responsibility is over, he can go back to attacking the boss, but when adds come, he focuses on me and together we focus on the adds. I simply put Astral Seal on the boss, the occasional D'd Forgemaster's Flame (Unless we need it, we prioritize each other over the group because we've found we can kite the boss/adds and everyone else be damned if they let us get overrun). Since we have adopted this new strategy, things have gotten ridiculously easy.
Note: I do not use Soothe (I do have it at 3/3 though) as I have found that a good GF can hold threat easily if they choose too on a boss + several strong enemies and good DPS can clear adds quickly if they choose too. In general, the issue with threat is that neither are choosing to do so. There are too many times I have 2 strong enemies and 4-5 weak enemies chasing me down in a dungeon when I don't have my CW friend with me and I will run past the boss and see 2 TR's and a GWF focusing the boss while the GF tanks it completely ignoring me. In this situation, I will kite to my hearts content, but I will not put astral seal on the boss...I will focus simply on killing the adds myself and ensure I do nothing to help them until my adds are dead...if they die I just continue as long as I can making them stand outside the boss fight watching me kite them all around.
tl;dr Leave me to fight for myself, I will leave you to heal yourself.
Healing: We have ample healing for the content I have experienced up to my level. You simply have to forgo the mindset of big heals for big damage. The big damage is made clearly visible and easily avoidable, don't panic if a TR or GWF all of the sudden drops to half health, instead view it as they stood in the red. Stupidity is at fault here, not you!
Feats: We do have some broken feats, but the class itself is no where near broken. I have (horrible I know) purchased 2 re-specs. I didn't purchase the re-specs because I felt I messed up my choices, but because I wanted to see the strengths and weaknesses of healing and damage dealing. And what I've learned is, you can heal just fine for most dungeons as a damage spec'd DC. You won't heal as well as a DC spec'd for healing, but you can keep your group alive.
Powers: Currently I like where most of our powers are at. Some are horrible and need re-worked. But we have more then enough to build multiple ways and be successful. Not much else to be said here.
Companions: I have tried several companions, all are currently level 20+. I liked the CW for early because the AoE damage helped clear packs quicker. Strikers I don't find very useful, they just don't do enough damage for me to consider them worthwhile. Tank I do use on occasion generally if I'm facing a solo boss who moves a lot because I like them to stand still so I don't miss daunting lights and they are pounding my face in knocking me down or stunning me while i'm trying to aim daunting light on an add or something. I prefer, in general the stat boosting companions for general questing.
Overall, I think the class is great. It's a learning curve to get away from the "big damage, big heals" mentality that most games have used. But once you accept that your primary responsibility is Mitigation, things get much easier. There are times where I occasionally find myself bored in a dungeon because I have a good team and the mitigation isn't needed...at which point I will switch to purely damage based Engagement abilities. Luckily we are versatile like that.
I love the Devoted Cleric, I have always preferred being a healer with tank as my second option. I view the DC as a Mitigation Control class with supplementary heals. Which seems to work out great. I think the biggest downfall of the DC is other players. Why? Simply put, people that tend not to play the DC tend not to understand the DC. I generally run with a CW for questing/dungeons and after much persuasion convincing him that he is not DPS, he finally agreed to try things my way, and things have gone immensely well ever since. Instead of focusing the boss, his job is solely to "Control" the mobs chasing/attacking me. When his primary responsibility is over, he can go back to attacking the boss, but when adds come, he focuses on me and together we focus on the adds. I simply put Astral Seal on the boss, the occasional D'd Forgemaster's Flame (Unless we need it, we prioritize each other over the group because we've found we can kite the boss/adds and everyone else be damned if they let us get overrun). Since we have adopted this new strategy, things have gotten ridiculously easy.
Note: I do not use Soothe (I do have it at 3/3 though) as I have found that a good GF can hold threat easily if they choose too on a boss + several strong enemies and good DPS can clear adds quickly if they choose too. In general, the issue with threat is that neither are choosing to do so. There are too many times I have 2 strong enemies and 4-5 weak enemies chasing me down in a dungeon when I don't have my CW friend with me and I will run past the boss and see 2 TR's and a GWF focusing the boss while the GF tanks it completely ignoring me. In this situation, I will kite to my hearts content, but I will not put astral seal on the boss...I will focus simply on killing the adds myself and ensure I do nothing to help them until my adds are dead...if they die I just continue as long as I can making them stand outside the boss fight watching me kite them all around.
tl;dr Leave me to fight for myself, I will leave you to heal yourself.
Healing: We have ample healing for the content I have experienced up to my level. You simply have to forgo the mindset of big heals for big damage. The big damage is made clearly visible and easily avoidable, don't panic if a TR or GWF all of the sudden drops to half health, instead view it as they stood in the red. Stupidity is at fault here, not you!
Feats: We do have some broken feats, but the class itself is no where near broken. I have (horrible I know) purchased 2 re-specs. I didn't purchase the re-specs because I felt I messed up my choices, but because I wanted to see the strengths and weaknesses of healing and damage dealing. And what I've learned is, you can heal just fine for most dungeons as a damage spec'd DC. You won't heal as well as a DC spec'd for healing, but you can keep your group alive.
Powers: Currently I like where most of our powers are at. Some are horrible and need re-worked. But we have more then enough to build multiple ways and be successful. Not much else to be said here.
Companions: I have tried several companions, all are currently level 20+. I liked the CW for early because the AoE damage helped clear packs quicker. Strikers I don't find very useful, they just don't do enough damage for me to consider them worthwhile. Tank I do use on occasion generally if I'm facing a solo boss who moves a lot because I like them to stand still so I don't miss daunting lights and they are pounding my face in knocking me down or stunning me while i'm trying to aim daunting light on an add or something. I prefer, in general the stat boosting companions for general questing.
Overall, I think the class is great. It's a learning curve to get away from the "big damage, big heals" mentality that most games have used. But once you accept that your primary responsibility is Mitigation, things get much easier. There are times where I occasionally find myself bored in a dungeon because I have a good team and the mitigation isn't needed...at which point I will switch to purely damage based Engagement abilities. Luckily we are versatile like that.
Post edited by xippin on
0
Comments
that said, i do like the class a lot.