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Oppressor PvP guide + video (HD)

astronaxastronax Member Posts: 0 Arc User
edited October 2013 in The Library

EDIT (IMPORTANT)
Roughly month passed since this guide was first created. And I have something to add: 2 new spells, some notes about enchants, stats and ability scores. See corresponding sections for more info.


HEAD

- So, hello there, fellow wizards!

- Not so long ago I found a post in oppressor-related thread, kinda "Why are you guys keep telling me Oppressor is so cool and noone made a guide yet? Why noone even playing this stuff?". And I was like, wait a second, I'm playing it, so, why not? :cool:

- I don't always read guides (u know, I just love to find OP things myself), but when i do, it's a f***ing Wall of Text. And im like, cmon guys, u seriously think someone gonna read this?
So, I'll try to make it as short as possible, promise. But in case u still think it's not worth wasting your time here, u may just watch my vid at least xD Feel free to comment the s**t out of it! xD

INTRO

-So, why ever take oppressor u may ask? Does'nt it suck in damage dealing and stuff? Well, no, not exactly.
I'm not 100% sure how it works in this game, but every normal RPG have a mechanis, such as when you hit defenseless enemy (stunned, sleeping, or you hitting him in the back or whatever) he is more susceptible to your attacks (take WoW, for example)
Here, I believe at least, target cant deflect while enemies having cobat advantage vs it, or it's stunned. Again, I'm not 100% sure, but at least statistically it looks like it. I mean, i never saw a foe yet, deflecting my stuff, while being stunned - may be I'm just blind xD
Thus, following my logics: more often you stun, more windows to put some nukez you open, more damage you do, statistically. And, ofc, wizards can stun, as all of us know. More so, we even have our class-specific stun, called "freeze". Which is not exactly a stun actually - yes, it does the same - supress movement, spellcasting, dodging, blocking, etc. It occurs on 6 stacks of chill, duration reduced by incoming damage and bla-bla-bla - u know that stuff ofc. Though, not everyone know it can go through some of CC immunities, like GF's block and (well, just 89.9% sure yet) TR's non-stealthed "Impossible To Catch" (ITC).
So, it as simple as it seems: faster you apply chill stacks, more stuns u can inflict. More stuns = more damage. And oppressor is just the right guy for this.
And at last, but not the least its effin fun to play, i swear =))


FEATS

- Since we talking about Oppressor, lets see what it is: (jump onto feats page directly)
I imply you, guys, ain't noobs, thus I wont make ridiculous comments like "If u are human, take 3 points in Prestidigitation"

- So, after having discussion with readers I thought this part need to be clarified: since we going to do damage, we want to have our "Nightmare Wizardry" - obviously, the best damage-oriented feat for oppressor. Thus, we can only spend 21 ponts in opp. tree, sadly=(
So, 2 feats are pretty much must-have, as you could guess: "Bitter Cold" and "Glacial Movement" and 3 left: "Severe Reaction", "Brisk Transport" and "Controlled Momentum".

Severe Reaction - pre-patch was broken as hell, now they fixed it (read: nerfed):
---
- Feat: Severe Reaction: This effect is no longer able to rarely trigger multiple times off the same action.
- Feat: Severe Reaction: This feat can now be resisted by immunity to Crowd Control.

---
So, u reallize what this mean: no more half-bar stamina procs on a single hit, no pushbacks on Unstoppable GWFs. Its pretty cool even after patch, and i'm still using it. At least for stamina regeneration, but with new Feywild boon system (I mean +10% stamina regen, ultimate boon) I can reconsider it.

"Brisk Transport" - obviously, cool utility feat, has a nice synergy with new feywild boon and, ofc, with "Severe Reaction". Allows you to kite dem pesky melees more effectively and simply move slightly faster, when you are not allowed to mount. By the way, stacks with itself, so you can get 30% movement speed buffs easily and, possibly, even more with lucky "Severe Reaction" procs.

Controlled Momentum - I used to think this feat is a must-have, but, after thinking on reader's question i have to admit - it is not. Later on this guide i'll say (spoiler alert), that your main at-wiill, Ray of Frost is f**ing broken OP s**t. Never the less, its clear, proc-free damage still sucks. Here you can take a look at ACT test results
---
b6af4a428566.png
---
top - with CM, bottom - without.

My crit severity is 113% (with Greater Vorpal), so after doing simple math:
with CM: crit-free average tick dmg: 554,
without CM: crit-free average tick dmg: 519.
As you can see it's around 6.7% difference, not stated 10% - CM doesnt stack with itself, more so, if it already exists on you, while u cast another controlling spell, buff duration is not renewed.
So, if you drop it, you'll lose from 2% overall damage (based on my dps on dummy ~5k, considering I have 100% CM uptime, which is close to impossible) to 1% (~50% CM uptime, which is closer to reality). Not that much, but still decent.

Which 2 of 3 to choose is your own decision, guys!

POWERS

Well, as u could notice, this thread's name contains PvP - so, we dont need much powers in pvp. I'll describe just those one u must have.

Ray of Frost - Well, i can't stress enough how OP this ability is. Despite the fact it adds slow and chill stacks, freezes at 6 stacks, in conjunction with [Storm Spell passive passive it has highest dps among all at-wills. (for more info check this)

Storm Pillar - This is for non-combat AP regen, mostly, as you could guess. But sometimes it can be used offensively - remember those pesky wizards, who attacking you from the pillars and hiding from line of sight, when u about to punish them back? Well, dont be shy to pre-charge Pillar and release it into wizard's face as soon, as he show it from LoS! xD

Chill Strike - as oppressor, this is your bread-and-butter ability. Feated, adds 3 stacks of freeze, has relatively short cooldown, provides short stun by itself and on top of this hits like a truck.
Significant minus: it can be dodged, so, if possible, do not risk and deny your opponent's ability to dodge/block through CC.

Icy Rays - 2 stacks of chill, add root effect (which deny foe's ability to dodge), can not be dodged itself (more so, root part can't be blocked by GF!) almost the same damage as Chill Strike non-tabbed, while tabbed hits even harder than Chill Strike (+3 stacks of chill, ofc, but u aint newbs and already know it, so why am I even telling this oO?).
Minus: a lil' bit long cooldown.

Entangling Force - Well, its just stun, nuff said.
And here we go, minuses: Longer cd, low damage, long cast-time. Can be dodged, thus, as with Chill Strike - try to CC first. In case of GF - freeze.

Repel - the best defensive encounter you can have vs melee. And it also stun, btw. With way shorter colldown than Entangling Force.
Minus: pretty low damage, but who cares!
Note: I personally don't like this ability that much, since sometimes it can push enemies out of your range, but it's just my playstyle, u know - KEEEL THINGYZ HUEHUE!11

Ray of Enfeeblement - obviously, a damage booster. Sometimes u, probably, going to need one in order to burn those priority targets as fast as possible. Well, and sometimes u just go trash-mode and watch dem 14k chillstrikes on naked ppl xD
Significant minus: it's not a CC, nuff said.

Ice Knife - well, just no comments, u know what it is. Just dont forget it also adds 3 chill stacks, which might be helpful for building combos.

Ice Storm - as oppresor it also quite obvious choice. Aoe prone, high damage, 5 stacks of chill on everyone - whatever you guys need.

NEW!
Maelstorm of Chaos - very underrated daily. Mostly because of zero crits bug (same as Storm Pillar, SoeA and Sudden Storm before patches). On top of that - really small AoE radius and rather long cast time make it hard to land. So, why even bother you ask?
pantamime wrote: »
Maelstrom of Chaos!!!! Immunity and CC Breaker, Mass control point Prone-er, The ability for a wizard to take a lot of heat when he is being focused and live through it, while getting everyone near him the hell away.

So you have immunities and severely reduced damages you take while you cast this spell. And it throws people near you to target location. That we all know( i hope)

You can cancel it right at the end of the cast bar with a dodge and only lose half your ap and use it completely defensively (useful against GF and GWF)
with good amounts of AP gain you can fill up half your points very quickly and get a couple of immunities against these warriors of prone.

Ok so thats all well and good. But the best part.....

It can break a lot of different CC.
You can break out of most CW cc, but cant break out of prone or daze. For those you have to use it as an immunity and cast it before you are hit.
Everything above is true (except, you actually CAN break out of daze). And on top of that, damage part of MoC - and its 100% - works as sShocking Execution. Ignore immunities, dodge, Soulfrged - whatever. Probably bug.

Storm Spell - believe me or not, with RoF proc rates, this thing is solid 25-30% of your total damage output. I don't know why, is it bug or planned, but this hust happens. At least ACT says so.

Eye of the Storm - another, clearly, broken thing. "Eye of the Storm: This power previously added too much damage for the duration that it lasted. (c)" "So, lets buff it even further, YAY!", they thought, probably. Previously EoS lasted for 8s with 32s cd and almost 100% proc chance. So, 25% up-time, effectively. Now it actually has a chance to proc, it not granted, but they removed cooldown. As result, up-time increased and now somewhere around 35%, if you use RoF as main at-will. (Yes, LOL! RoF got increased proc chance for EoS)
35% uptime means if, for example, u have 25.0% crit chance (natural - from gear, feats etc) means EoS gives you 26.25% bonus crit chance. Assuming u have 75% crit severity, EoS alone gives u 16.6% bonus damage.
And, if you think about that, it's actually only passive boosting your Storm Spells.

Conduit of Ice - month ago I used this ability on tab 99.9% of time. When tabbed it adds 1 stack of chill per second. Last 6 seconds, so 7 ticks, 7 stacks of chill. Not to mention it has relatively short cooldown and very nice damage (up to 15k on full duration with crit - depends on chill stacks) it allows you to perform some sick freeze combos.
I will not describe every one of them, since it depends on situation, but easiest is: CoI + EF + chillstrike (while target still EFed) + 1 tick of RoF to proc freeze + Icy Rays + RoF untill freeze.
On GFs, for example it slightly different: CoI + Icy Rays - than RoF while he stands rooted, untill freeze + EF + chillstrike, while he still EFed.
You better try yourself - just remember to count chill stacks and after some point you'll start to do this subconsciously.

There are 2 more abilities u can use alternatively in your tab slot as Oppressor. Here are examples of Icy Rays in tab:

- Oppressor PVP Build (by degraafination)
- PVP: How I Deal with TRs (by same guy)
- Oppressor PvP stream (by honoraryorange)

NEW!
Another good encounter for your tab slot is Shard of Endless Avalanche. It was fixed and now can crit, doing pretty good damage (up to 13k-15k without HV abuse). But, more important - it allows you to stunlock things completely. 2 consequtive prones for 1 target, 1 AoE prone for 2+ targets. Almost as cool as daily, eh?
On top of that, it has ridiculous synergy with High Vizier set, adding from 2 to 3 stacks of debuff. With HV nerf it turns into another nice bonus from completely broken OP $hit.
Though, it takes some practice to use correctly, and it has relatively long cooldown. And on top of that, its bugged (surprise!). If you stunned, I mean precisely stunned (or forzen) - with flourish or entangling force or whatever called "stun" (not "prone", or "daze") - shard dissapears and ability goes on cooldown. Rather annoying thing, I'd say.

- probably, closest to ideal usage of SoEA (stream) (by Lantis)
unnecessary note:
-damage comparision of tabbed CoI vs IR encounter sets
-as soon as I'll do tests about tabbed SoEA encounter set, this part will become normal size. Untill than its not ready and, thus, remains shrinken, read at your own risk!

After i wrote this guide (and before it) i had a few convos (in-game and here, on forum) about filling tab slot - CoI vs IR.
Well, i can't deny tabbed IR is cool. IMHO, 15k nukes is something, that should not exist in game with health pools <25k average. But, goddam, i love CoI so bad.. so i decided to compare them.
What encounters I usually run? Well, as you could notice from vid, CoI on tab, IR + CS - always, and 3d depends - repel, EF or RoE. But usually EF. What usually people run? Well, if you are opressor, and dont use my encounters, most likely u running tabbed IR, RoE/repel, CS and EF. And i find it quite good choice, in terms of burst (for RoE) and utility (for repel), especially with HV set. So, we going to compare damage, right? Obviously, RoE based set doing more damage, than repel based (by that, it doesnt mean its better actually, at all)
So, what do we have?

[tab CoI]+COLOR="#E6E6FA"]IR[/COLOR+COLOR="#E6E6FA"]CS[/COLOR+COLOR="#E6E6FA"]EF[/COLOR vs [tab IR]+COLOR="#E6E6FA"]RoE[/COLOR+COLOR="#E6E6FA"]CS[/COLOR+COLOR="#E6E6FA"]EF[/COLOR

here are ACT tests for spamming tabbed CoI, tabbed IR and RoE - I didnt check CS and EF, since both sets have them, thus, it shouldnt matter. (tabbed and non-tabbed IR are equal in terms of procs)

So, in terms of damage its pretty weired, since i assume my GG set messing with tabbed IR (you can notice "Icy Ray", as if i cast IR on 2 different targets, while, i swear, i didnt.) But, i can assure u, IR alone vs CoI alone (full duration) is pretty much equal, assuming you making burst with EoS up, buffed, etc. (if you dont believe and can't do math by yourself, ask and i'll help).
But, there are PROCS, did u forget??? xD
So, as you can notice:

- CoI provides ≈ 0.36 EoS procs per cast and = 1.40 Spell Storm procs per cast.
- IR provides = 0.38 EoS procs per cast and = 1.24 Spell Storm procs per cast.
- RoE provides ≈ 0.19 EoS procs per cast and0.25 Spell Storm procs per cast. (WUT?)

Aye, having tabbed IR + RoE seems really bad for your procs, in terms of sustained damage you will do slightly less damage, compared to tabbed CoI + IR (even assuming RoE mitigation debuff). If u ready to trade this for burst - u welcome, thats ok. If you want consistent damage - better go for tabbed CoI.
Hope that helps!



GEAR

-Honestly, i dont like dem talks about gear - wear what you like to. But only GG PvP set and High Vizier are those having good set bonuses.
NEW!
Though, HV debuff stacking over 3 was incredibly OP, even after nerf it will remain one of the best (if not the best) sets. Hard to say for sure, don't want to lie and make false assumptions - need testing.

note:

IR+GG seems to be slightly bugged, but not 100%, with tab. Sometimes its ok, sometimes not. Usually ok, though.
Just remember, your stats priority is:

offensive

- arpen up to 2.5k with GG set is fine, no hard cap, though, just DRs start hitting hard. With HV you probably wont be able to grab over 1.8k, without rank 10s or sacrificing tons of defensive stats.
- crit anything around 0.5-1.5k is good, no need to get more, since u got EoS.
- recovery up to 2.0-2.5k, no need to get more cos of DRs.
- power - as soon as u get first 3 stats soft-capped push this thing, no caps at all, the more you have, the better.

defensive

NEW!
It slightly differs which defensive stats to have, depending on your set actually.
For GG:
Health and somewhere around 1200-1300 defense - just in order to stay in positive defense ranges, while having 3 stacks of HV debuff on you. Trust me, it makes a huge differense. No need to get more, since you cant allow much of it anyways and, thus, it will neglected by armor pen. As soon as u got enough, push health.
For HV:
Some people prefer to push regen and deflect, on top of those, provided by HV itself, but personally I don't like this way and would prefer good old health. Regen is cool, but it wont save you from burst. Deflect is also cool, but its random (and can be neglected by having combat advantage or through CC) - personally, I don't like to rely on random things. I mean, 700-800 regen/deflect from HV (+ ancient/fomorian orb, likely) is already cool enough (IMO!), just leave it like that and get some health.
Defense is not needed, since you going to have those HV stacks, usually.

weap. enchant

- I know all the talks about GPF vs Vorpal. And once i did some math about them - assuming GPF works as it stated, removing 15% def. per stack - sadly, I did it just for myself and didn't keep dem Origin files. But whatever - no point for me to lie. It appears, GPF removing 2.0-7.5% damage resistance (depends on target's def. bonus + AC + resistance buffs). And, it's not bad actually, not bad at all. But not for PvP CW. In terms of pure damage increase Greater Vorpal doing almost the same damage on heavy armor as GPF (still slightly more, around 2%), but significantly more on light armor (CWs, TRs) - up to 15% with EoS. Aye, guys, EoS and G Vorpal is a sick combo, trust me!
(In case you really interested in those maths, i can re-do it and post it here, just whisper.)

arm. enchant

- Soulforged you say? Well, everyone running around with soulforged, but im not really sure about it, srsly. Having Greater/Perfect SF sure helps, but if you chosing between lesser/normal verisons Thunderhead might be a better option.
Almost since start i was running with normal thunderhead and was just fine, i promise. Having a chance to stop that pesky rogue/GF/GWF from bullying you and start your own CC chain is just priceless.
Got normal SF few month ago - well, it might be helpful in some situations, REALLY helpfull, but usually - not. It requires you to actually take damage at 25% in order to proc. Sometimes u just die from 30% to 0% - those, who checked video, probably remember me, killing a guy name's Snewfie (and he's having perfect one, i suppose?) and me, dying from TR and GWF - from 50 to 0. But WAY more often its like 50%-->24%-->0% (just for example).
NEW!
Recently got Greater Negation and feeling just about awesome. If you can afford Perfect - take a look on Barkshield. Its likely better than Perfect Negation. (not sure, need testing)
My character (Gateway link)

ABILITY SCORES

Cha vs Wis

- Recently saw a thread with such name. Well, i'm not 100% sure about Thaum and Renes PvE builds (since it requires testing, ofc), but for PvP Oppressor Cha 100% better than Wis. I've tested it once (ofr myself, again, ofc) - for 5 min 46s of spamming stuff into dummies i had ONE more Ice Knife, while specced into Wis + Controlling Action. So, having both of those - high Wis and Controlling action is a waste. Same goes for boons +2% AP vs 700 hp - go for hp without a shadow of a doubt.
And, ofc, dont forget - we freeze things, not stun them and freeze duration is not affected (or ALMOST not affected) by Wis bonus, due to unstable freeze nature.

more details:
astronax wrote: »
-
Im tiefling, you know, with fire buff im at 27 Int, 16 Wis and 22 Cha - so I traded it on test server for 27 Int, 20 Wis, 18 Cha AND Controlling Action for even MOAR AP regen.
Was spamming full rotation into dummies for 5:46 min with wis and cha both same time spans. Wis testing gave me 1 more Ice Knife, compared to Cha testing. 14, if i recall right, up from 13. So, effective cooldown was for Wis: 24.7 s, for Cha - 26.6 s. All those dummie-spamming experiments are VERY rough ofc, but still, shows you at least an order of magnitude - its so f***ing insighnificant.
While overall damage of +Cha testings was actually higher.
-
By "unstable freeze nature" i mean exactly what you told, dude =) U dont benefit from cha controll bonus on freezes. Only control reduction on yourself is somehow useful. But 4%..? meh...

NEW!
If you agree to lose some damage, you can grab some Con and (in case you stacked with deflect, and/or you are Halfling) Dex instead of Cha/Int



THANKS FOR READING!!!
- Well, dude, if u actually read the whole guide, i must admit u just a beast! :cool: I luv u, srsly
Post edited by astronax on

Comments

  • degraafinationdegraafination Member, Neverwinter Beta Users Posts: 0 Arc User
    edited September 2013
    Hehe,

    Snewfie's in my guild. PVP with him a lot. Thanks so much for this guide! Always love having insight to more Oppressor goodness.

    A quick comment on what I (personally) run Icy Rays instead of CoI on Tab:

    1) CC, of course. It's a good way to ensure your Ice Knife hits if you don't have E. Force up, for instance.
    2) On Tab IRs stacks three chill instead of two. Nice!
    3) Most importantly, IRs procs the High Vizier debuff since last patch (-450 Def)! CoI does not because it's not CC.

    Keep up the good work!
    PWP_zpsf8f711ce.jpg
    Join Essence of Aggression: PVP-ing Hard Since Beta!
  • astronaxastronax Member Posts: 0 Arc User
    edited September 2013
    Hehe,

    A quick comment on what I (personally) run Icy Rays instead of CoI on Tab:

    1) CC, of course. It's a good way to ensure your Ice Knife hits if you don't have E. Force up, for instance.
    2) On Tab IRs stacks three chill instead of two. Nice!
    3) Most importantly, IRs procs the High Vizier debuff since last patch (-450 Def)! CoI does not because it's not CC.

    Keep up the good work!

    Yay! 1st commenter! All luvz coming to u :D

    Well, for HV its probably really the better option - having 4 "Controlling Encouters": repel, chillstrike, EF and icy rays. Since CoI is not considered as "Controlling".
    Though, for GG PvP set tabbed IR appears to be buggy. Im having exactly the same numbers on dummies at least. While for CoI GG is the best - reduced CD, increased dmg - everything u need.

    I'd say the main difference between tabbed and non-tabbed is DA DAMAGE. Really makes a difference while fighting GWF, since u need that <0.5s burst and having dot-like CoI ticking on him is not a wise idea. Like get get him RoEd, wait for unstoppable to fade off, cast IR once, repel, than one tick of RoF to get target chilled (for feats damage buffs), than instantly Ice Knife + Chill Strike + 2nd cast of IR. With crits should be hell-of-a-lot damage in very short period.
    I'd try it with Heimdall actually xD

    P.S.
    Hehe,

    Snewfie's in my guild. PVP with him a lot. Thanks so much for this guide! Always love having insight to more Oppressor goodness.
    Yay! Tell hello from me to Snewfie! xD I know he's a very kind guy somewhere at the bottom of his soul ;)
  • kouroumbelokouroumbelo Member Posts: 0 Arc User
    edited September 2013
    nice guide XD

    i mostly run with tab IR, roe,EF,chill strike. Not having IR is really a handicap imo,is the most dmging skill u have,it adds extra chill,Roots the target and it CANNOT be avoided!!XD

    sorry for my english gonna try explain sth about crit!! dunno if it will make sense ;P

    in pvp the way u deal dmg is situational. I mean is not like mobs standing and u pew pew.Many times after EoTs procs u might not be able deal dmg for the next 3 secs. u might need to avoid an inc attack or someone might stun/prone etc...dunno if u get what i say^^.

    I tested with high crit,2.7k+ and with low as well 1.2k~~ and i noticed difference at least for my gameplay.
    My only problem is how to get high crit/armor pene with HV set ;/ with SW is doable but with HV is really hard so i guess leaving crit low is only way^^.

    btw really nice video as well.
  • astronaxastronax Member Posts: 0 Arc User
    edited September 2013
    nice guide XD

    i mostly run with tab IR, roe,EF,chill strike. Not having IR is really a handicap imo,is the most dmging skill u have,it adds extra chill,Roots the target and it CANNOT be avoided!!XD
    Aww, thank you there, kind sir=)) Nice feedback, btw!
    And, well, I know what tabbed IR does and its not much differenct from non-tabbed, except x1.5 damage. It's cool, i agree. If only I could have both non-tabbed IR and tabbed IR i'd have them both, i swear. But I can't=(
    So, since IMO(!!!) tabbed CoI + normal IR is better than tabed IR + whatever (especially non-tabbed CoI, which is good for nothing), im running it.
    By the way, it's not the most damaging skill. CoI doing about the same damage - depends on chill stacks - even at single target. Not to mention its a huge radius aoe. Icy rays is an instant damage tho, so it's better for arranging short burst combos, like I described above.
    in pvp the way u deal dmg is situational. I mean is not like mobs standing and u pew pew.Many times after EoTs procs u might not be able deal dmg for the next 3 secs. u might need to avoid an inc attack or someone might stun/prone etc...dunno if u get what i say^^.

    Well, its just math, bro. The trick is: now, after patch (and probably its pretty hard thing to understand) its EXACTLY the same as in pve!!!

    That thing you described was killing pre-patch EoS in pvp, and here I can't disagree. Pre-patch eos lasted for 8s with internal cd 32s between procs. So, in case you wasted those 8s (which happens alot in pvp, you absolutely right), you was forced to actually wait for cooldown. In pve u just didnt waste them, doing no-brain pew-pews all the time. In other words, you did damage all the time, while buff was on you.

    What we have now? Now it last for 3s, but have NO cd at all. That obviously means you dont need to wait for it lol. Which, statistically, is almost exactly the same ****ing thing, as you just dont waste your EoS on dodging - like in pve. U just doing stupid pew-pew while buff on you. Its all clear now - you do damage, u got chance to get a proc and not waste it. You dodgeing/stunned = you dont do any damage, and, thus, dont have a chance to get a proc, thus, u dont waste anything.

    So, crit sucks, i promise. Buffing it from 25% crit to 35% means (if you got eos) u actually will get just 6% effective crit. From 51% to 57%, which sucks, honestly, assuming how much stats you should waste to get dem 25--->35%.
    I have around 30% crit and feel like its perfectly fine.
  • crystal892fcrystal892f Member, NW M9 Playtest Posts: 385 Arc User
    edited September 2013
    Hey, thanks for your guide. Really nice to have some video material (yourself, a mentioned streamer) and this insight (i.e. SF vs. Thunderhead, CHA vs. WIS, ...)

    But I have a few questions as well.
    Feats - Severe Reaction vs. Brisk Teleport: I saw, you took "Controlled Momentum" as feat. Why? We don't use RoF for damage, so what's the reasoning behind this? Because without it you can simply take both Severe Reaction AND Brisk Teleport.
    EDIT: Wait, does the bonus damage from "Controlled Momentum" stack?

    Gear - With GG set IRs don't get the 50% damage bonus? wtf Cryptic! Have you reported this?

    Defensive Slots - Quote
    And, anyways, you can t afford any significant investment nto def. stats, without loosing offensive stats. And loosing offensive stats is just bad for CW, you know.
    I don't understand this. Defense goes also into a Defensive Slot, just like HP, so what do you mean by this?
    By the way, I don't argue your statement, because I agree, I just wanna understand what you are talking about.

    Attributes - CHA vs. WIS - Interesting to hear your tests on AP gain, but what about cooldowns, CC resistance and longer CC duration? Could you notice any differences?
    And do you mean with "unstable freeze nature" that the freeze's duration varies depending on if the the target is attacked or not, or what?
    Oh, and I think you mean
    high Wis and Controlling action is a waste
    right?

    By the way: The new EotS is really ridiculous - even without RoF. I was on the preview shard yesterday and in 10 tries with both CoT AND RoE ticking, EotS ALWAYS proc'ed, so my attack after that was always a crit.
  • kouroumbelokouroumbelo Member Posts: 0 Arc User
    edited September 2013
    yes what you say is true the benefit no seem much for crit...
    I like burst dmg thats why i take Tabbed IR and chill strike(which leaves no much options for other 2 encounters roe +EF)

    Is like a nuker,so i take all the crit i can get without gimping my armor pene alot ;/, IR+CS=(13k+8,5k ) dmg on most targets.

    Havent got the chance to test low crit with new eots tho..

    gonna try out around 25-30% see,thnx for the info and the nice explanation^^.
  • degraafinationdegraafination Member, Neverwinter Beta Users Posts: 0 Arc User
    edited September 2013
    I'd love to know if Controlled Momentum stacks!
    PWP_zpsf8f711ce.jpg
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  • astronaxastronax Member Posts: 0 Arc User
    edited September 2013
    oh-boy.gif

    You guys really did a good job commenting that boring s**t i wrote ;) Thanks a lot! =))
    We don't use RoF for damage
    Lol.. was already typing mad commentz, like "WUT? U SICK BRO? ROF DMG OP".. But suddenly realized you are not that wrong. RoF dps on dummies - alone, just with Storm Spell (SS) - is around 2500-2700 s-1, just to compare orders - full rotation dps on dummies is around 5700 s-1) BUT, the trick is: around 40% (or even more, dont remember atm) of that damage coming from SS. You basically youse RoF as SS proc instrument!
    ---
    For whole rotation RoF part is around 15-20%. So, having CM means you buffing your overall damage output for 1.5-2%. And its pretty cool actually!
    But, LOL! Its comparable with BT - I never actually thought about that. You free to drop it and get BT - its perfectly cool, you wont lose much.

    Only if...
    EDIT: Wait, does the bonus damage from "Controlled Momentum" stack?
    I'd love to know if Controlled Momentum stacks!

    Wait... WUT??? :eek: I'd love to know it too oO Gonna do some testing later today...
    EDIT

    Tested, it works fine, but doesnt stack. Solid 10%, guide updated with pic.
    Gear - With GG set IRs don't get the 50% damage bonus? wtf Cryptic! Have you reported this?
    Well, its severe, i know, but it's pretty pointless to report bugs in this game.
    EDIT

    Well, ok, jsut did tests. IR+GG seems to be bugged, but not 100%, with tab. Sometimes its ok, sometimes not. Usually ok, though.
    I don't understand this. Defense goes also into a Defensive Slot, just like HP, so what do you mean by this?
    By the way, I don't argue your statement, because I agree, I just wanna understand what you are talking about.
    I mean, your stats managment is not just about your enchants. You can get different necks, belts, rings and stuff. I saw a guy recently wearing HV, court mag set, ancient deflect rings, deflect neck and deflect enchants and was like, "Emm, wut? :eek: Dem sick PvE'rs..."
    Attributes - CHA vs. WIS - Interesting to hear your tests on AP gain, but what about cooldowns, CC resistance and longer CC duration? Could you notice any differences?
    And do you mean with "unstable freeze nature" that the freeze's duration varies depending on if the the target is attacked or not, or what?
    Oh.. thx for finding typo, bro xD
    -
    Im tiefling, you know, with fire buff im at 27 Int, 16 Wis and 22 Cha - so I traded it on test server for 27 Int, 20 Wis, 18 Cha AND Controlling Action for even MOAR AP regen.
    Was spamming full rotation into dummies for 5:46 min with wis and cha both same time spans. Wis testing gave me 1 more Ice Knife, compared to Cha testing. 14, if i recall right, up from 13. So, effective cooldown was for Wis: 24.7 s, for Cha - 26.6 s. All those dummie-spamming experiments are VERY rough ofc, but still, shows you at least an order of magnitude - its so f***ing insighnificant.
    While overall damage of +Cha testings was actually higher.
    -
    By "unstable freeze nature" i mean exactly what you told, dude =) U dont benefit from cha controll bonus on freezes. Only control reduction on yourself is somehow useful. But 4%..? meh...
  • degraafinationdegraafination Member, Neverwinter Beta Users Posts: 0 Arc User
    edited September 2013
    Just wanted to jump in and say how much I love playing my Oppressor build. I was previously a Renegade. Now, as a Renegade, I definitely got more kills in PVP. But Oppressor spec is just... fun! We just did a match and myself and another Oppressor stayed together the entire time. Everything was an ice cube! Such fun!
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  • astronaxastronax Member Posts: 0 Arc User
    edited September 2013
    Everything was an ice cube! Such fun!

    ^Pretty much this^ ;)
    Btw, upgraded "POWERS" part - added few things about tabbed CoI vs tabbed IR. You, guys, welcome to check xD
  • degraafinationdegraafination Member, Neverwinter Beta Users Posts: 0 Arc User
    edited September 2013
    I updated my thread on how to deal with TRs/GWFs, as well. Keep up the fun work!
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  • crystal892fcrystal892f Member, NW M9 Playtest Posts: 385 Arc User
    edited September 2013
    After some days playing with the Oppressor spec (I respec'ed with the free token) in PvP and getting used to the new setup and rotation, I gotta say it really is quite fun! I even felt bad for a GWF who couldn't kill me in multiple 1on1s. GFs are even easier to freezelock. DCs aren't quite a challenge either. And against a CW it pretty much comes down to who CC's first. But I had multiple occasions, where a CW EF'ed and CS'ed me first, I was below half health or even near death, but since he didn't have any other CC's (besides maybe IR, but when get hit by it, you can still attack, so...), I started my combo and still won - great feeling.
    (Even though all of the described above may be because I didn't had good (geared) opponents - I don't know.)

    My only problem remains: TR. Especially permastealth ones.
    I just can't find a good way to deal with it - I mostly lose the fight.
    Marking a TR with one IR sign is a good tactic, sure, but mostly a TR goes into stealth before I'm near enough to mark him. So I have no idea where he is.

    Type 1 of TR (ITC): He comes near and when I managed to mark him, I can dodge his hard hitting powers. But then (or when I start my CC chain) he blows ITC and I have to wait until it runs out. In this time he can happily attack me with Impact Shots and what not. IF (and that's a big IF for me) I manage to survive all this until his ITC runs out and I can start my combo, I can win. If he has soulforged, I mostly still lose. Because I'm so low on health at this time, that the few seconds of CC- and damage-immunity are enough to finish me off.

    Type 2 of TR (permastealth): Here I'm really out of ideas. I know, there are some tactics with using any non-targetable AoE to hit him out of stealth (Shield, Steal Time, Icy Terrain, Ice Storm), but that doesn't work for me. I mean, why should a TR be close enough to you, that you can hit him with this powers?! Even if he is close enough once and I hit him out of stealth and kill him, most players will learn from that and simply don't be so close next time.

    Any ideas?


    And another question: I followed the Thunderhead argumentation and slotted one yesterday (Lesser one, though - I don't have much AD). In my 10 or so matches after that, I didn't see it do ANYTHING for me. Is there even a sound-/ effect, when it activates? So that I maybe only didn't notice it proc'ing?
    I also wasn't aware that the chance to shock is only when you get hit with a CRIT. Is this really reliable for you? I mean, in contrast to Soulforged (well, if you don't get hit with 26+% health to 0%)?
  • degraafinationdegraafination Member, Neverwinter Beta Users Posts: 0 Arc User
    edited September 2013
    Not sure there is a good answer for perma-stealths, to be honest. Icy Terrian on Tab allows you to place it where you like, but that's about it. I normally run full or partial premades and we communicate very well. I'll send a GWF or GF back to point to take care of them. TRs remain my biggest challenge as a CW, especially perma-stealth ones.

    Another good tactic I use versus regular rogues is porting to my melee buddies and standing very close to them. It messes up their targeting sometimes and will buy you a few valuable seconds.
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  • almightybizzoalmightybizzo Member Posts: 30 Arc User
    edited September 2013
    This guide is BAWS! Well done, Tiah! ;D
    <3 Aja / Nepenthe

    [SIGPIC][/SIGPIC]
  • paradoxie01paradoxie01 Member, Neverwinter Beta Users, Neverwinter Guardian Users Posts: 24 Arc User
    edited September 2013
    Not sure there is a good answer for perma-stealths, to be honest. Icy Terrian on Tab allows you to place it where you like, but that's about it. I normally run full or partial premades and we communicate very well. I'll send a GWF or GF back to point to take care of them. TRs remain my biggest challenge as a CW, especially perma-stealth ones.

    Another good tactic I use versus regular rogues is porting to my melee buddies and standing very close to them. It messes up their targeting sometimes and will buy you a few valuable seconds.
    Correct they are our hardest matchup it is mostly an up-hill battle if they aren't badly geared.

    These are the things you can try to do but it is not something that gives you an advantage over perma stealth.

    Powers used : Icy ray , shield , shard on (tab) , CS/EF (up to you), storm pillar (at-will)

    1: If you feel their presence cast a full charged storm pillar run behind it and wait for the sparks to zap them when they are anywhere near it or force to go pass it to chase you.

    2: Cast Shard , if Pillar shocks the TR use the shard on the select path/area asap if you are lucky the shard might score a knockdown with the pillar still shocking Him

    3: Now you shield pulse and force him out of stealth depleting his invis gauge , by now he most likely be out of stealth if he hadn't use ITC yet and now you can chain stun him with your combo before he hits ITC, if he manage to ITC before you get a chance to CC him, do what you had to do against ITC rogues, tele and stay out of melee range until its over and right before his itc goes off. Lastly use IR on them before they re-stealth and make distance buying time to charge up storm pillar again and also pre-casting shard again.

    Note, that this isn't a solid solution but it does gives him enough pressure forcing him to retreat sometimes if they don't wanna risk dying to you " most oftenly happens when shard scores a double knock down and you critted most of your powers on him. Majority will try to kill you with "Path of blades" and avoid all your aoes while semi-perma's will try to chain Impact shot you and try to kill you before their ITC runs out but all in all they are still humans.

    Changing into these setup means that you are not properly equipped to fight other classes that efficiently anymore since you have replace some of your powers for shield, shard and pillar. That said, shard can be a good (Tab) power against all classes but it is not something that you cast freely especially with its long cd and sometimes being canceled by other ccs during a 5v5 clash. Hope this helps ^^
  • degraafinationdegraafination Member, Neverwinter Beta Users Posts: 0 Arc User
    edited September 2013
    Storm Pillar could be a good call. I tend not to use Shard in PVP because of the terrible casting time. Normally I have about 2-4 seconds against a stealth rogue before I'm dead. Not much time.

    Fun times against a regen-Sentinel for a point last night (Opposing team had three regen-Sent GWF, DC and CW). I held our point against him almost the entire time just by using Repel, Shield on Tab, EF and Ice Storm. Love it!
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  • astronaxastronax Member Posts: 0 Arc User
    edited September 2013
    This guide is BAWS! Well done, Tiah! ;D

    Oh.. dat Aja, keep embarassing me :o Thank you, sweetheart, hope you found it somehow useful =)

    And another question: I followed the Thunderhead argumentation and slotted one yesterday (Lesser one, though - I don't have much AD). In my 10 or so matches after that, I didn't see it do ANYTHING for me. Is there even a sound-/ effect, when it activates? So that I maybe only didn't notice it proc'ing?
    I also wasn't aware that the chance to shock is only when you get hit with a CRIT. Is this really reliable for you? I mean, in contrast to Soulforged (well, if you don't get hit with 26+% health to 0%)?

    Ok, now u making me feel bad for, probably, giving a bad advice.
    This effect is, actually, quite easy to miss - on activation it makes "Bzzzt!!!" sound - just like Storm Spell. Stun part - its like ppl who wanted to kill u previously now sometimes give you 1.5 seconds to catch your breath instead, with golden clouds suddenly appearing above their head. And you like "Hey man, dafuq are u standing still, y u no kill me? oO" And than like "Lol, right, he's stunned u, dumbass!" - initially, i was missing it too for quite a long time, but after you get used to it you'll find it quite helpfull.
    Or, I dunno, at least I found it quite helpful. Probably, it's just me being hipster, and for every one else it sucks.:confused:
    Not sure there is a good answer for perma-stealths, to be honest.
    .....
    I normally run full or partial premades and we communicate very well. I'll send a GWF or GF back to point to take care of them.

    Well, i agree, not much we can do, that will 100% work.
    Thankfully, not all of them actually playing that perfect, as xblade (creator of this build). They still show up from time to time and you can quicken this process by spamming Ice Storms and, probably, Storm Pillars (lol, no need to go for other aoe, if you want to play effective Oppressor, i beg you). And/or asking your teammates to also spam non-target AoE.
    As soon as they shows up - they doomed, since, you know, they dont have ITC - so, feel free to chain-stun and nuke them down ;)
  • pantamimepantamime Member Posts: 0 Arc User
    edited September 2013
    nice guide and video. As a fellow long time oppressor CW. (Have been since open beta pre launch and always will be, havent even bothered trying pure damage builds.

    There is one part in your video where you say it would be OP for wizards to have an immunity and CC break.....

    Since you're a fellow Oppressor I will clue you in on a little known fact about the "most useless" and "weakest" daily in our arsenal. (it is secretly the most powerful in pvp, jut doesnt have flashy high damage like ice knife, but the amount of utility it gives is unmatched.

    Maelstrom of Chaos!!!! Immunity and CC Breaker, Mass control point Prone-er, The ability for a wizard to take a lot of heat when he is being focused and live through it, while getting everyone near him the hell away.

    So you have immunities and severely reduced damages you take while you cast this spell. And it throws people near you to target location. That we all know( i hope)

    You can cancel it right at the end of the cast bar with a dodge and only lose half your ap and use it completely defensively (useful against GF and GWF)
    with good amounts of AP gain you can fill up half your points very quickly and get a couple of immunities against these warriors of prone.

    Ok so thats all well and good. But the best part.....

    It can break a lot of different CC.
    You can break out of most CW cc, but cant break out of prone or daze. For those you have to use it as an immunity and cast it before you are hit.


    I know Ice knife is great and all and it is my other daily. But Maelstrom of Chaos is hands down the most beneficial daily spell we have.

    With certain spell setups using MoC I have CC'ed enemy teams on the control point long enough for reinforcements to arrive while not taking much damage my self.

    MoC is also very helpful against pesky perma stealth rogues.

    I suggest all my fellow Oppressors take the time to test and try new things with Maelstrom of Chaos. It is useful in a lot of different situations. But most of all it is the bad *** <font color="orange">HAMSTER</font> spell when you are out numbered.

    MoC, Steal Time, Icy Terrain, Spell mastery SotEA, and whatever other spell you want (EF or CS or SS are all good choices)

    This is the setup I use when I want to break up and discombobulate my enemies team.

    The real key to playing a good PvP wizard, no matter what build. Is a good understanding of your mechanics, and a good knowledge of what spell set ups to use based on your enemy teams set up. Dont get stuck in just one spell set up with just 1 rotation. Good players of any class will know what youre going to do after the first or second engagement with you.

    Just my 2 cents
    [SIGPIC][/SIGPIC]
    PVPer rocking it Solo queue style since the dawn of Neverwinter
  • pantamimepantamime Member Posts: 0 Arc User
    edited September 2013
    Oh, Play around with SotEA in tab slot as well. If you are having troubles with rogues perma stealth or not. It also helps take down DC very quick.

    You are going to want to have the target up and ready to go. Then cast EF(or CS) and immediately drop the shard on your now floating and strangling prey. Knock them over and then catch them with a Time Steal. Run them over with the shard. Now hit them with a CS and collide the boulder in to them knocing them prone again.

    (You can have the ground target of SotEA out and ready while you cast your CS and EF, I like to call doing this setting up to click cast. Eliminate that extra button press by having it ready when you neter a fight.)


    Hit them with freeze ray (THey should still have 3 stacks of chill from CS because we are oppressors!)

    after all of this you should have either EF about back up or CS up for sure if thats how you started the chain. I like to save it for right before i hit them with shard the last time for the chill stacks into an easy freeze.

    This is where MoC comes in handy, because now you are left vulnerable in this small cool down window, you have your dodges yes so you can dodge while you are waiting for your cooldown or just cast MoC and throw your enemy back on the ground.

    Using your three dodges to wait for cooldowns is a good way to go if you have MoC to cast once youre out of dodges, We dont wanna get caught up in some kind of CC nonsense. We're the controllers after all.
    [SIGPIC][/SIGPIC]
    PVPer rocking it Solo queue style since the dawn of Neverwinter
  • astronaxastronax Member Posts: 0 Arc User
    edited September 2013
    pantamime wrote: »
    Just my 2 cents
    Dafuq.. kind of best 2 cents since i started to play CW, if this:
    pantamime wrote: »
    It can break a lot of different CC.
    is true.

    I knew there is still immunity and damage reduction part for half ap cost if damage part cancelled. But didn't find it too helpfull - i just couldn't find any real situations, where i could use it. Didn't know it can actually break CC, if you are already being CCed. (Well, even f*ck that part about dazes and prones, still sounds cool)
    Guess its time to go test server again and check it more carefully, thx a lot for advice! (Though, that means I have to drop Ice Storm and i dont like this part:()

    And, hey! Thx for positive critics, fellow oppressor, sincerly! ;)

    P.S
    Sadly, can't update the guide before monday, since i'm out of town for a weekend... :(
  • pantamimepantamime Member Posts: 0 Arc User
    edited September 2013
    One more bit of info on MoC that I just realized tonight while in the witchs fen. The giant ugly witches are immune to CC. But if you cast MoC directly on the it will put them in an electroshock spasm/stun for a good little bit.

    So it seems the stun works on immune mobs. Although I haven't tested it on dungeon bosses i will. But it works on the psuedo bosses.
    [SIGPIC][/SIGPIC]
    PVPer rocking it Solo queue style since the dawn of Neverwinter
  • astronaxastronax Member Posts: 0 Arc User
    edited September 2013
    Well, continuing that logics: does it work on unstoppable GWFs? :eek: Not like it would be uber-helpful - just curious to know xD
    ----
    Just specced into it btw, gonna test tonight xD
  • pantamimepantamime Member Posts: 0 Arc User
    edited September 2013
    astronax wrote: »
    Well, continuing that logics: does it work on unstoppable GWFs? :eek: Not like it would be uber-helpful - just curious to know xD
    ----
    Just specced into it btw, gonna test tonight xD

    I am going to test this out tonight after work. Was just thinking about if it would work on GWF beast mode, Shock through GF shield, And possible shock ITC TRs. If it goes through all the PVE immune people I am hoping it goes through the pvp immune too. It's only like 1.5sec shock tops so maybe 1 sec in pvp.

    Still 1 sec of a gwf in beast mode unable to do anything or a tr in itc made useless for 25% of that time is all sounding good to me.

    Maybe if im not feeling too lazy tonight I will post clips of it shocking Immune mobs/people.
    Breaking CC in pvp.
    And just the ways I have found most useful to utilize it.

    Using a teleport to cancel it right at the end to just use it for immunities is a good counter and way to break up anyones CC combo's before they start and you can start your CC chain after the teleport to flip the tide of the fight.
    [SIGPIC][/SIGPIC]
    PVPer rocking it Solo queue style since the dawn of Neverwinter
  • astronaxastronax Member Posts: 0 Arc User
    edited October 2013
    Guide updated, fell free to check and comment.
  • kaoswpkaoswp Banned Users, Neverwinter Knight of the Feywild Users Posts: 144 Bounty Hunter
    edited October 2013
    Nice Tiah! Going to have to check this out later. Nice vids :)
  • astronaxastronax Member Posts: 0 Arc User
    edited October 2013
    kaoswp wrote: »
    Nice Tiah! Going to have to check this out later. Nice vids :)

    Thx, Kaos, really glad to hear that =)
  • hidahayabusahidahayabusa Member Posts: 634 Bounty Hunter
    edited October 2013
    Very very nice. Going to try it out. Keep up the good work.
    * Notorious Dwarven Bear Cavalry Leader *
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