Sandstorm/Glacial Snare
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CeliaZ - Sanctuary
Posts: 901 Arc User
Im hitting the lvl 5X now, and I just got Glacial snare and Force of Will. Both very nice skills. Now for the next 10 levels I have the option to either upgrade Sandstorm, Glacial snare and Force of will (I have maxed pyro and gush).
I cant level all three, cause I dont have enough money and spirit, and if I do I wouldnt have enough money/spirit to buy Blade Tempest and Black Dragon at level 59, which I want very badly (specially the dragon).
Now you guys say that Sandstorm should be your first skill to level ever. BUT I am very PvE based... And I know that for the next 15 levels I'll be grinding on foxwings (misfortune/etherblade). And they are weak against water... so you would say I should level glacial snare for them. Or not?
So my question is.. what should I level for the next 10 levels?
Thanks, Celia.
[edit] Same thing for the barriers... I have lvl 6 Glacial and lvl 5 Pyro. Glacial is nice because I dont have to meditate that long, and my mp will run out less soon so I can grind longer. But pyro is nice for the fire defence against the foxwings. Help!
[edit 2]lets not forget Essential Sutra... although I guess that can wait a couple of levels.
I cant level all three, cause I dont have enough money and spirit, and if I do I wouldnt have enough money/spirit to buy Blade Tempest and Black Dragon at level 59, which I want very badly (specially the dragon).
Now you guys say that Sandstorm should be your first skill to level ever. BUT I am very PvE based... And I know that for the next 15 levels I'll be grinding on foxwings (misfortune/etherblade). And they are weak against water... so you would say I should level glacial snare for them. Or not?
So my question is.. what should I level for the next 10 levels?
Thanks, Celia.
[edit] Same thing for the barriers... I have lvl 6 Glacial and lvl 5 Pyro. Glacial is nice because I dont have to meditate that long, and my mp will run out less soon so I can grind longer. But pyro is nice for the fire defence against the foxwings. Help!
[edit 2]lets not forget Essential Sutra... although I guess that can wait a couple of levels.
[SIGPIC][/SIGPIC]
Post edited by CeliaZ - Sanctuary on
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Comments
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Sutra can't be leveled so don't worry about that, unless you mean wellspring to 5 to get sutra, and in that case, get it
I would go with the water shield first. The fire mobs will not hit you hard when it is up even at lvl 5, I find the mana regen to be a huge time saver and was able to kill more mobs per session. I didn't even use fire shield agaist the foxwings cause you usually kill them before they even hit you, and if they do, once max. Maybe its just preference as you won't have to max your PvP skills later so you can spend a little more SP and coin on those things
Also outside of foxwings, i only use fire shield in fb39, and one set of mobs in the late 60's. Again though i don't think its that big a deal which goes first, just saves some regen time to me
As for Glacial / Sandstorm, i would go Sandstorm. It is the spell you use against most mobs and has a quick cooldown so can be used multple times. It will still rock Foxwings. Glacial is a good opening spell but has a long cooldown you won't be recasting it often. Mine is at level 2 now and i don't plan on it going higher anytime soon. If i did a glacial, sandstorm, gush the foxwing was usually dead though late 50's i needed a fourth spell which could be any fast one, maybe glacial gush sandstorm gush
FoW will come in very useful against a lot of the quest mobs in the late 50s 60s as there are a few phys mobs, archers, metal casters. I find it to be a life saver often if i get attacked by 2 mobs, or if thrown in the right combo it keeps me from getting hit by a lot of mobs. That being said mine is only at level 2 and for mob killing i have never really needed it to be longer, if you do some Pvp though you will want it higher, i know i sure dob:bye0 -
Quick and easy:
Force: lv5, good, fast, helpful
Snare: Touch if you like good damage and slow but, but I did gush cos its faster cast
Sadstorm: Max as much as you can, the accuracy damage is good for PVP and melee monsters0 -
The range on Glacial Snare isn't that great to start with, so if you use it as an opening spell you'll have to get a lot closer to the mob to start with. The main benefit of Glacial is the 80% slow effect but the duration and would only make it slightly better than a Sandstorm/gush combo. (just guessing though as its been a while since i've had a lvl 1 glacial)
Also depending on what level you're Sandstorm is you'll probably do the same or more damage on fire mobs with Sandstorm than you would with Glacial Snare. Glacial also costs 484k SP for lvl 9 and 704k SP lvl 10 plus a huge amount of coin, and it only really passes Sandstorm in damage at level 10 but costs at least a million more SP to max.
If I were to start again I'd probably level Force of Will over Glacial, FoW is pretty good at interupting casting mobs, just pop one when they start the glowing disc under them and they'll run away from you.
And as far as the Ultimates go, dont bother levelling them unless you plan on TW/PvP/PK. Sutra/Advanced spark is a much better way to use 2 sparks as both regen 10% of total MP.I like pie0 -
I have sandstorm lvl 3, and I will continue to level it. Glacial and FoW ar both level 1, so level Fow to 2 or 3 and leave glacial at 1 untill later levels?
I think I wont play alot of PvP, but I am going to do some TW though. But not untill 70+.Sutra can't be leveled so don't worry about that, unless you mean wellspring to 5 to get sutra, and in that case, get it
Do you need Wellspring to level 5 atleast to get sutra? I have wellspring level 3 now.[SIGPIC][/SIGPIC]0 -
CeliaZ - Sanctuary wrote: »Do you need Wellspring to level 5 atleast to get sutra? I have wellspring level 3 now.
Yes, Sutra requires level 5 wellspring.As only the child that I was, I tread with giants.
Their footprints on the sand, marked for times immemorial, serve as evidence of hope.
And though my short legs could not keep up, my heart was always by their side. Conqueror.0 -
Leave Snare and FoW at 1. They're not worth the high cost at your level. There's much better alternatives.Wondering how much longer these **** packs are going to be around.0
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Force of will is good at level 5. Get it there ASAP. It gives you time to gush and pyrogram.
Being a mage is all about timing
FoW is part of that.0 -
And FoW isn't worth the money for that "timing" bs. Blink backwards. There's your time. You're not going to have enough SP for your ultimates, sutra, divine pyro, sandstorm, stone barrier, 3 starter spells, blink, earth mastery, some breath AND FoW.Wondering how much longer these **** packs are going to be around.0
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At slightly higher levels SP won't be your problem, money will be.As only the child that I was, I tread with giants.
Their footprints on the sand, marked for times immemorial, serve as evidence of hope.
And though my short legs could not keep up, my heart was always by their side. Conqueror.0 -
As soon as I hit 70 my spirit sky rocketed. I have enough spirit to buy most of the skills, just no the cash, Sky is INDEED correct.
Force is well worth the money and the interuption and run away time is a dream.0 -
Skyannie - Lost City wrote: »At slightly higher levels SP won't be your problem, money will be.Wondering how much longer these **** packs are going to be around.0
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At lv80 (cleric), i have 17 of my skills on max level, 6 only have 1 level, and the remaining 7 (high level skills, thus more expensive) are upgraded past lv5.
So, its pretty safe to assume you will have all your skills maxed before lv90.
At lv70+ spirit starts coming like water, you just need to invest ALL your grinding income on buying skills, otherwise you cant keep it up.
My advise here is that you always upgrade first those skills you use most the time, leaving others for later, even if they are "powerful".(Retired from Perfect World)
[SIGPIC]http://i163.photobucket.com/albums/t297/Brain1203/smart.jpg[/SIGPIC]0 -
i dont really tend to upgrad fow since the benefit from one lvl is so small but costs a lot.
i prefered to up snare a bit and its now lvl 4(?) and its great in pve.
i really like to start with it so i can throw a sandstorm in before the mob starts casting...if the mob got a strong attack i use fow after ss otherwise i use gush and/or pyro.
i dont know if i will up it further though0 -
I also REALLY like snare. The slow is amazing and the range difference is no problem to me. I'll leave FoW at 1, it is nice to get some time, but it is not worth the money and sp to get 1 or 2 seconds extra.
Sandstorm will remain my main skill for everything exept fire and earth mobs. And I've also decided long ago I dont wanna lvl stone rain (I have sandstorm now anyway) so that leaves me with alot of extra sp. Same for earth barrier, since Im not a pvper (yet), I dont wanna put sp and money in here.
Thanks for you replies.[SIGPIC][/SIGPIC]0 -
Just for the record, Stone barrier helps for more than PvP. Archer-like mobs hurt like a ***** without it, along with melee mobs. It's saved my **** a few times in FBs when I pulled agro from the tank. (Stupid BMs zzzz)
And both Stone Rain and Stone barrier are pretty cheap, so you should really get at least lv5 of them. Stone Rain is still good for water mobs, which you'll be fighting pretty often during 5x. Barrier is just handy in general.Wondering how much longer these **** packs are going to be around.0 -
Kristoph - Lost City wrote: »Just for the record, Stone barrier helps for more than PvP. Archer-like mobs hurt like a ***** without it, along with melee mobs. It's saved my **** a few times in FBs when I pulled agro from the tank. (Stupid BMs zzzz)
And both Stone Rain and Stone barrier are pretty cheap, so you should really get at least lv5 of them. Stone Rain is still good for water mobs, which you'll be fighting pretty often during 5x. Barrier is just handy in general.
The earth resistance, allright, but the 50 - 100 % phys defence? So alright, I have 360 instead of 230. I am a pure int, and you're right that it can save your life, but I just make sure the archer types just cant hit me. I will raise it, just not now.
I both have lvl 5. And during my 5x, I will be grinding on flying mobs mostly. I know you're right, I just have my own playing style:)[SIGPIC][/SIGPIC]0 -
I meant a lot of quests at 5x. That and killing water mobs in 3 hits is quite fast, most likely better than flying mobs since there's a lack of them at that level. (Foxwings still suck at that point)
And honestly, even in robes, you're going to have about 800 defense at 5x. So yeah, 1200 instead of 800 is nice, you should check how much of a difference that makes. It's pretty damn big.Wondering how much longer these **** packs are going to be around.0 -
In the end you should max all you're shields, late 7x or middle 8x because when you hit heaven and hell the stat bonuses from the shields are insane. My glacial snare is lv1, i dont see any point in lvl it when it has such a slow cast and a I can just use my gush which has less then a second to cast with my channeling items.
I maxed devine pyrogram and gush, so as soon as my pyrogram shoots out I have my gush to slow the mob down STRAIGHT AWAY without moving towards the mob. Glacial snare is SO SLOW compared to gush i didn't bother lvling it. force of will is good for PvE and PvP, the higher the lvl the more they cant attack and it is WELL worth it in PvE so you can fire up as much power as you can while it runs and in PvP incase someone stronger comes along, force of will them and theres no 1 hit problem, you can just hope on your fly mount and do your best to get away haha.0 -
on ecatomb it says "Demon version has reduces channeling time by 2.1 seconds." for snare...
is this really correct?? i mean it would be damn fast then and very strong0 -
Mrbungle - Lost City wrote: »on ecatomb it says "Demon version has reduces channeling time by 2.1 seconds." for snare...
is this really correct?? i mean it would be damn fast then and very strong
Yes this is correct. So (imo, I use glacial as an opener always, max it whenever possible) an already great spells becomes even more awesome. As it stands right now, Glacial>Sandstorm>Gush>Pyrogram kills 95% of mobs I've run into at my lvl. I say lvl it. At 74 I have maxed pyro, divine, gush, stone rain, glacial embrace, stone barrier, distance shrink. Glacial, Sandstorm, Blade tempest maxed as I gain the lvls. 5 in wellspring and morning dew. 5ish in FoW. 1 in everything else except DB (lvl3)0 -
Calibix - Heavens Tear wrote: »Yes this is correct. So (imo, I use glacial as an opener always, max it whenever possible) an already great spells becomes even more awesome. As it stands right now, Glacial>Sandstorm>Gush>Pyrogram kills 95% of mobs I've run into at my lvl. I say lvl it. At 74 I have maxed pyro, divine, gush, stone rain, glacial embrace, stone barrier, distance shrink. Glacial, Sandstorm, Blade tempest maxed as I gain the lvls. 5 in wellspring and morning dew. 5ish in FoW. 1 in everything else except DB (lvl3)
I'm impressed... I don't have the spirit to keep up with Glacial and FoW atm :<"Amour is better suited to rainbow text, because he is a classy lady." - Nakhimov
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Amour - Lost City wrote: »I'm impressed... I don't have the spirit to keep up with Glacial and FoW atm :<
Well, force of will isn't , but i have put some levels into it. I also only have lvl 2 in all my masteries, I know some people who like to get earth maxed right away. But once I get sandstorm maxed in like 10%, that's going to free up a lot of sp. Money isn't an issue for me atm, I just sold a cape of tuaren chieftan. /flex0 -
Well if you're into PvE a lot here's my suggestions.
Through your 50s I would concentrate solely on Sandstorm (always keep sandstorm maxed, always), getting wellspring to L5, and leveling Divine Pyrogram (for use in sutra @ 59). Any extra SP/Coin you can dump into shields or something else of your choice. At L59 SKIP the ultimates (I know I know shocking!) because at low levels they're not good in PvE, require 2 sparks, and cost a ton of SP/coins. Do pick up Sutra, it is nice to have and regens 10% of your mana on cast. For pure PvE concerns Sutra or Adv Spark Erupt is more mana and damage efficient then your ultimates.
Through your 60s continue to ignore ultimates, pickup several levels of FoW (at level 1 its pretty sucky 2.3 sec seal for 2 sec cast time is a net of maybe .8-1.2 seconds depending how far they run and if you catch them midcast) but at level 3-4 it really works well). Also start dropping some SP/Coin into element masteries, particularly earth mastery as from L66 - L70 you'll be grinding on Minions of Alucard (water flying mob near Altar of Dispair in swamp). For the minions you will want stone rain maxed and levels in earth mastery, sandstorm->stone rain->sandstorm makes for a 3-shot if you're pure. At about L69 Glacial Snare has enough range/high enough proc chance to make it your new opening skill. So at L69 or L73 be sure to catch up with Glacial Snare.
Now I've taken you as far as I have experience so everything from here on is untested. By this point stop putting points into masteries as they start to become expensive for +2% dmg on one element (somewhere like L8 earth L4 water L2 fire). Sandstorm will max at L75 coupled with the fact that SP rates shoot up past 70 means that now is a good time to catch up with an ultimate. Pick the water or fire ultimate, for PvE water is probably better. Keep glacial snare and FoW maxed at all times, always leadoff with glacial snare and time your FoW such that the target is not slowed when you hit them with it. They'll run away fast, then gush them so they run back to you slow.0 -
Mrbungle - Lost City wrote: »on ecatomb it says "Demon version has reduces channeling time by 2.1 seconds." for snare...
is this really correct?? i mean it would be damn fast then and very strong
No, the international version is misleading.
The channeling is reduced TO 2.1 seconds.
Read the MY versions for more accuracy.
Likewise with Pyrogram for demon, it is reduced TO rather than BY.
Else pyogram would be 0.3 seconds channeling.. that really is too powerful.0 -
Thanks Elahim, very usefull 'mini guide'.[SIGPIC][/SIGPIC]0
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Mrbungle - Lost City wrote: »on ecatomb it says "Demon version has reduces channeling time by 2.1 seconds." for snare...
is this really correct?? i mean it would be damn fast then and very strong
Well, by that point you'd probably have all but your most useless spells maxed, so you can probably max snare if you wanted to.
The main problem with snare is that you can basically use it once. I mean, I guess it might be good if you Sutra and Glacial > Sandstorm for 2 really powerful spells, but Glacial Snare still has a 1.8 second caste time, meaning that you'll probably get better damage from casting 2x Divine Pyros instead of 1 Glacial when Sutra'ed. The other part of it is the cooldown time - 15 seconds!!!! That might not be a huge deal in PvE if you use it once per mob.0
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