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Grimah's Comprehensive Wizard guide

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  • sslothzzsslothzz Member Posts: 224 Arc User
    edited October 2013
    Now some interesting question :)
    Archmage set is designed to benefit control encounters. So you say that it works with
    Ice Rays
    Entangling Force
    Chill strike
    Icy terrain
    Shield
    Steal Time

    But under Shadow Weaver set description I definitely see that Ice Rays is not considered as a Control (and why should it?):
    Non-Control:
    Ray of enfeeblement
    Sudden storm.
    Ice rays.
    Conduit of Ice.

    Moreover, Shadow Weaver description stipulates Repel and SotEA as Control spells, but they definitely don't trigger the Archmage set effect according to your information.

    Should I assume that Archmage set is still broken? :)
  • fondlezfondlez Member Posts: 0 Arc User
    edited October 2013
    sslothzz wrote: »
    Now some interesting question :)
    Archmage set is designed to benefit control encounters. So you say that it works with
    But under Shadow Weaver set description I definitely see that Ice Rays is not considered as a Control (and why should it?):
    Moreover, Shadow Weaver description stipulates Repel and SotEA as Control spells, but they definitely don't trigger the Archmage set effect according to your information.

    Should I assume that Archmage set is still broken? :)

    An ability that instantly immobilizes you is not a "Control" spell? What are you smoking?

    Besides, every set has different definitions for what applies to them and they are never explicitly stated. So, it is up to players to discover the details and these details even change sometimes, e.g. Icy Rays with High Vizier. The label of "Control" Powers on set tooltip descriptions, like everything else in the game, should therefore be taken as only a hint.
  • grimahgrimah Member Posts: 1,658 Arc User
    edited October 2013
    each set considers different spells as control spells.
    Creator of the featured survival horror foundry: "The Silence of Haydenwick" Video Review
    and also the featured satirical comedic adventure "A Call for Heroes".
  • sslothzzsslothzz Member Posts: 224 Arc User
    edited October 2013
    each set considers different spells as control spells.
    Now that makes perfect sense.
  • algolmuirgenalgolmuirgen Member, NW M9 Playtest Posts: 9 Arc User
    edited October 2013
    I have fave spells I "like" to use and my problem is that the paragon trees do not support them in any sort of orderly manner. I've read conflicting info on here and Grimah, your info is the cleanest. Btw, I loved your Farm v.3. Awesome. Truth is, it's also a great place to practice spells on mobs of your level. Maybe I should ask my questions in the following orders.

    1. I've tried the Renegade Paragon path. It's okay, but I'm liking things I see in the others. It's as if a blend isn't possible that works with a mostly "Chill" wizard. Where to go from here?

    2. I want to respec only one more time. I did before, following what I thought was the best blend, but I was unfortunately wrong. Being abysmally poor, I don't want to spend any more money than I have to (as a disabled former RN, I'm no dummy...just not able to spend too much to "try" multiple respecs). I have decent base stats. Those don't worry me. Can folks give me some ideas on fav. spells that are synergistic.

    3. Should I go for the spells I like then try to figure out a Paragon Path following that?

    4. I perfer chill spells, but it's obviously any CW needs a blend since many opponents are immune to either arcane or cold. As someone who prefers chill...any thoughts?

    5. I have to essentially work with the spells as the basis of power vs gear. I don't have the bucks to do as a friend of mine did and just purchase epic gear and work from there. Any thoughts on what would be best for a CW with high Int and Cha and decent Wisdom? I want to wipe the slate clean and start again.

    Thanks for any further help...I tipped you the most I could for your farm. What a blast! I'm still using it after the Waukeen bags are gone for trying to harvest items to get gold for professions and such.

    Siobhan
  • uurbsuurbs Member, Neverwinter Beta Users, Neverwinter Guardian Users, Neverwinter Knight of the Feywild Users Posts: 449 Bounty Hunter
    edited October 2013
    ...just not able to spend too much to "try" multiple respecs[...]
    Use the Preview shard to try out respecs.
    Proud member of Dragon Clan - German Gaming Community
  • sslothzzsslothzz Member Posts: 224 Arc User
    edited October 2013
    3. Should I go for the spells I like then try to figure out a Paragon Path following that?
    No, that won't work. The situation might change with any patch. But for now Thaumaturge is bets for PVE while Oppressor and Renegade is best for PVP.
    4. I perfer chill spells, but it's obviously any CW needs a blend since many opponents are immune to either arcane or cold. As someone who prefers chill...any thoughts?
    All spell loadouts are described in this guide, on the first page. Do you wish to know the sequence of casting them? Or what is your question? :)
    5. I have to essentially work with the spells as the basis of power vs gear. I don't have the bucks to do as a friend of mine did and just purchase epic gear and work from there. Any thoughts on what would be best for a CW with high Int and Cha and decent Wisdom? I want to wipe the slate clean and start again.
    Gearwise, go dungeons and grind for it! To do so you have to be somehow equipped. Considering the cold loadout, Gladiator Mage (T1 PVP set) or Champion Mage (GG PVP set) is just enough to successfully finish T2.
    Archmage set from T1 dungeons is also nice, but it works with a different (arcane) loadout better.
  • sslothzzsslothzz Member Posts: 224 Arc User
    edited October 2013
    uurbs wrote: »
    Use the Preview shard to try out respecs.
    I couldn't find the Preview Shard in my launcher after some patch. The button was there, now it's gone :eek:
  • uurbsuurbs Member, Neverwinter Beta Users, Neverwinter Guardian Users, Neverwinter Knight of the Feywild Users Posts: 449 Bounty Hunter
    edited October 2013
    sslothzz wrote: »
    I couldn't find the Preview Shard in my launcher after some patch. The button was there, now it's gone :eek:
    It is still there for me. Did you revisit the Preview Shard Website--and created a new clone of one of your characters?
    Proud member of Dragon Clan - German Gaming Community
  • grimahgrimah Member Posts: 1,658 Arc User
    edited October 2013
    If you prefer to go Chill i would recommend thaum because that spec utilises chilling cloud and conduit of ice. But in a practical sense, you may find going full chill inefficient unless you are soloing only.

    As for immune monsters, both wizards will not be able to CC. you just have to nuke them down and dont eat red.

    What i suggest you do is: When you buy a respec, do not use it. Instead copy your character onto the test server (multiple times) and you can test out new specs there. until you have one that you are most comfortable with.
    Creator of the featured survival horror foundry: "The Silence of Haydenwick" Video Review
    and also the featured satirical comedic adventure "A Call for Heroes".
  • algolmuirgenalgolmuirgen Member, NW M9 Playtest Posts: 9 Arc User
    edited October 2013
    Sounds awesome!!! As a relative newb, how do I copy my character onto the test server to do this? Are you saying buy, don't use, but move things around on the test server? I'm off to try and find out how to do this, but any help would be appreciated. I've copied your response and am off to try and figure out how to do this.
  • uurbsuurbs Member, Neverwinter Beta Users, Neverwinter Guardian Users, Neverwinter Knight of the Feywild Users Posts: 449 Bounty Hunter
    edited October 2013
    [...] As a relative newb, how do I copy my character onto the test server to do this? [...]
    Search is your friend, but in the meantime use the Prewiew Shard link.
    Proud member of Dragon Clan - German Gaming Community
  • skelemiereskelemiere Member Posts: 3 Arc User
    edited October 2013
    I personally loved this guide! Great job and keep up the great work. ^^
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  • drsconedrscone Member Posts: 309 Arc User
    edited October 2013
    I've just done a feat respec on the preview shard and focused wizardry and wizards wrath did not increase the damage reported for Sudden Storm, Conduit of Ice or Icy Terrain, at least when looking at the pop up when they're added to my power bar.

    Is this just a UI issue, or are they genuinely unaffected does anyone know?
    Tele Savalas, Dwarf Thaumaturge CW
    Putting the Buff into Debuff since 2013 \o/ (Does that even make sense)?
  • grimahgrimah Member Posts: 1,658 Arc User
    edited October 2013
    Just a UI issue, I parsed data mutliple times to be sure. they all had 15% increases.
    Creator of the featured survival horror foundry: "The Silence of Haydenwick" Video Review
    and also the featured satirical comedic adventure "A Call for Heroes".
  • drsconedrscone Member Posts: 309 Arc User
    edited October 2013
    grimah wrote: »
    Just a UI issue, I parsed data mutliple times to be sure. they all had 15% increases.

    Thanks very much. PW certainly don't like to make it easy for people do they?
    Tele Savalas, Dwarf Thaumaturge CW
    Putting the Buff into Debuff since 2013 \o/ (Does that even make sense)?
  • vascodergamervascodergamer Member Posts: 0 Arc User
    edited November 2013
    grimah wrote: »
    Encounters:
    Shield (Arcane - AoE): reduces damage, and will lose its effectiveness when struck but will automatically refresh itself, the cooldown to recast is significantly reduced depending on your arcane stacks (50% reduced cooldown at 5 stacks).
    The resistance can save you from lethal damage. When charged it will absorb 50% normal and 80% on Mastery it gives 10% resistance whilst it is charging up.
    It has no target limit and does moderate damage however it will calculate it's damage/critical chance per target. It is most notably used push grouped up mobs off cliffs and down holes (coupled with arcane singularity), but otherwise it is situational, but great during the leveling phase. (Recommended at 1 point atleast)
    I think they nerved it in one patch recently to hit only 5 targets. Maybe that is only on preview, could not find the patch notes on a quick search.
    grimah wrote: »
    Dailies:

    Maelstrom of Chaos (Arcane): Does alot of damage for an aoe, and will transport enemies near you to the target location. However this radius is rather small, especially when comparing it to arcane singularity.
    You should put 1 point in here as you need it to interrupt Valindra in the end boss fight in Malabog Castle.

    Thanks for the guide,
    greets Vasco
  • grimahgrimah Member Posts: 1,658 Arc User
    edited November 2013
    Thanks i have made amends about shield. i have also corrected the issue with tempest magic, from new information that it does infact stack with tiefling racial.

    I will not add maelstrom tip for valindra, because it looks like a bug, and not intentional.
    Creator of the featured survival horror foundry: "The Silence of Haydenwick" Video Review
    and also the featured satirical comedic adventure "A Call for Heroes".
  • sslothzzsslothzz Member Posts: 224 Arc User
    edited November 2013
    Maybe here someone can answer what is the upcoming soulforged change? :) I'm too lazy to reg@visit test shard.
    And to make this question more related to CW topic - my CW has both HV and SW armors enchanted with gsoulf. Such expensive, so grind, much coals, wow ><
  • grimahgrimah Member Posts: 1,658 Arc User
    edited December 2013
    Made the first update for dread ring this includes:

    Smoulder details and mechanics
    New powers/features
    AP gains for new powers
    Target limit for new powers
    New feats details

    Edited/changed some other unnessecary text and outdated information/advice and more new player friendly descriptions.

    I will be adding once live hits:

    Companion section and active bonuses and such.
    New chill strike/entangling AP gains
    Which spells are not affected by armor penetration
    Spell loadouts examples
    Creator of the featured survival horror foundry: "The Silence of Haydenwick" Video Review
    and also the featured satirical comedic adventure "A Call for Heroes".
  • dpskanedpskane Member Posts: 3
    edited December 2013
    thanks so much, grimah, your guide helped me a great deal.
    glad to see it gets some updates :)

    some opinions:
    when i was a complete newbie, this was the first thing i found. thus i found it strange to first find a section about gear and companions before reading about powers and feats - which are much more important for starters. i would change that order. the stat explanations should stay with the gear suggestions, of course.
    one thing i was also missing was a section about races. most people think that the race choice does not really matter. which is not true for minmaxers that just take anything. maybe a section about pros/cons of different races would be good.
    also a suggested starting ability distribution plus explanation might be good, whether 18/13/13 or 16/16/12 or 16/15/13 (the latter i like for almost all classes the most; but INT gives a wizard more than the primary of other classes, making the 18/13/13 distribution very valuable...
  • grimahgrimah Member Posts: 1,658 Arc User
    edited December 2013
    I dont really find it that important when it comes to race, if you do want to min-max anyone can tell you to pick Tiefling. i dont want to write such a thing on my guide though. And i dont have anything against int/wis CWs either. I'll try to rework it so its more new player friendly when i get around to updating it for dread ring.
    Creator of the featured survival horror foundry: "The Silence of Haydenwick" Video Review
    and also the featured satirical comedic adventure "A Call for Heroes".
  • dpskanedpskane Member Posts: 3
    edited December 2013
    the problem with "anyone" is "anyone's" respectability :)
    i myself don't trust any guide nor any author. but if i find a guide where the author goes into detail for many many things, then i get the feeling he does not just round up his experience. someone that plays a tiefling ALL the time and always chooses the same feats/powers, might get a lot of confidence about the fact that his char performs well and shares it with others. nevertheless there might be overlooked compositions that are quite a bit more efficient. thus, i trust an author that not just shows confidence, but rather knows his math and seems to have plenty of experience in lots of variations.
    you're maybe the most respected wisdom-sharer in this subforum, and this might become clear to newbies as well, so they trust you more than others.

    in the worst case you can divide the guide also into "info for newbies", "infos for oldies" and anything else.

    but it is *your* guide, so i agree that you should put what you think is the best information. just shared my opinion, because i like the guide already a lot :)
    when i looked for guides for TR, GF and DC, i only found *one* similarly good guide for the DC, though quite outdated. a race selection for those classes was much less easy. i did read guides that said that human is by far the best option for clerics, hands down. when i see what bonus feats i can get i wonder.... now i play a high-elf, the 2% RSI bonus via INT is better than 3 points in any of those crappy feats (after maxing the best 20). TRs? very different. some praise half-orcs to the moon and back, others go drow, others humans, and others halflings. none of the guides shows proper explanations nor math to strengthen their statement.

    the worst thing for a newbie is not to select the wrong powers or feats. or gear. or companion. or .... the only thing that can not be rewinded is race selection and the choice of first ability distribution. that's why in my opinion this is somehow the most important thing to tell a newcomer: "find your preferred race and stats. tiefling is the best damage dealer. some more control is provided by high elfs, though the value of the tiefling's damage does (IMHO) outweigh a half-elfs control advantage. humans can not compete, because of ... . halflings are best for pvp and while in pve race choice is a minor difference, it is not in pvp. if you plan to do quite a bit of pvp, go halfling. race x, y are inferior to tiefling, because ... . race w, z are inferior to half-elf, because of ..."

    just trying to point things out that would have been most interesting to me as a beginner.
    at first i wanted to find out whether i like the game. i am lvl 60 now and i know i do.
    and since i love minmaxing, i would be quite shocked if i would find out now that half-orc wizards trump tieflings by 5%...


    another thing i liked a lot in a TR guide: the author was rating different powers by their value in pve and pvp (plus giving some explanations). should you be bored, that could be another step :)
    i guess i can find various things that (from my point of view) would improve the guide, but i am glad it exists at all and even gets an update with dread ring.

    thus, the main point i try to make is: Many many thanks for going through all that effort of finding out those things and sharing your wisdom with us!!!
    (especially those that have no clue - like me :P)
  • edited December 2013
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  • grimahgrimah Member Posts: 1,658 Arc User
    edited December 2013
    thanks both for the excellent feedback. After consideration i think i will add a race section, atleast one detailing pros of each.

    However i wont go so far as rating each spell, because imo every encounter we have is good, and useful in one situation or another. (but some may disagree with me).

    I will try to update it soon, but all this new content + my 3 classes, a baby ranger i find myself often distracted!
    Creator of the featured survival horror foundry: "The Silence of Haydenwick" Video Review
    and also the featured satirical comedic adventure "A Call for Heroes".
  • edited December 2013
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  • grimahgrimah Member Posts: 1,658 Arc User
    edited December 2013
    As per request i have re-organised the guide,

    - Cut out useless information.
    - Added a new player section.
    - Moved stats/gear to the end of the game.
    - removed a bunch of spell load outs (players can make up their own mind)

    to be added:
    -Updated gear
    -pets and info on how they work.
    a9d2f wrote: »
    Here's my thoughts on your oppressor section:

    Severe Reaction: I think this feat really helps your survivability. It activates quite often for me since I like to get in close for casting steal time and icy terrain. Nice thing about it is that some enemies have fast attack chains and when it activates you only get hit once instead of twice or three times. It no longer pushes cc-immune enemies back (magma golems, formorians, most bosses, etc.) due to a patch.

    Bitter Cold: activates all the time, good feat.

    Brisk Transport: I have never tried it.

    Chilling Control: meh. Tried it once and never again.

    Cold Infusion: terrible feat because it's the same debuff you get from chilling cloud's third strike and they don't stack. I haven't tested it in awhile but that's what I noticed last time I tried it.

    EDIT: Glacial Movement does work correctly now, just tested it.

    Alacrity: best feat in the tree if you like icy terrain or entangling force. With a good recovery score you can have 2 icy terrains ticking at the same time or have 2 foes entangled for a short amount of time.

    Controlled Momentum: I can verify that it does activate for 6 seconds as I see the icon show up under my character portrait, but I can't verify it increases your at-wills by 10% as I don't have a combat log parser and a 10% increase is hard to notice. These spells will activate it: chill strike mastery, steal time, shard, and icy terrain. Conduit of ice and ray of enfeeblement will not activate it. Other powers not listed have not been tested.

    Shatter strike: ice storm is very situational so it's mainly the chill strike that you'll be using. It does apply 3 stacks instantly to the enemies affected (so multiple enemies if you have it on mastery).

    thanks for the feedback. Would it be too much to ask if you tested all Controlled momentum?

    The spells you described sound alot like the same spell set as archmage. I got too excited and used my respec without copying a char over to test myself.
    Creator of the featured survival horror foundry: "The Silence of Haydenwick" Video Review
    and also the featured satirical comedic adventure "A Call for Heroes".
  • fondlezfondlez Member Posts: 0 Arc User
    edited December 2013
    The link in the forum sticky to this guide seems broken. It appears to be redirecting to your Dread Ring PvE guide, the last time I checked.
  • grimahgrimah Member Posts: 1,658 Arc User
    edited December 2013
    Iadded a link to your bug report concerning arp too if you do not mind. thanks for all the work, fondlez as many others prob feel its greatly appreciated.

    (those links are all a mess!)
    Creator of the featured survival horror foundry: "The Silence of Haydenwick" Video Review
    and also the featured satirical comedic adventure "A Call for Heroes".
  • edited December 2013
    This content has been removed.
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