[X] My Assistant

I love this thread so much, it breaks my heart when it's not on top. So here's a bump-type question:

Outside of hourlies and arenas, what's the best way to level up quickly? I'm doing IWBTH crude IW with heavy/2h. If I keep protection and haste on always and recast regen together with protection, I've been able to go around 16 deep with no powerup drops, using superior mana pots (of which I have 7). I think I get a good mix of XP and prof doing this, and the odd item drop. No credits but I do all my arenas daily so it's not awful.

Sub-question, I don't have SV but I have a bunch of scrolls of shadow for some reason, should I just sell them since I don't evade anyhow?

Not being on top is good, that usually means everyone playing this game actually understand the play build, the strategies, the value of a certain piece of equipment, etc etc

Crude IW is not good for exp, as item quality influences monster exp and may or may not have effect on loot quality drop rolls. IWBTH Legendary IW monsters may hit like train, but at least they provide more exp and possibly get better loots than the IWBTH hourlies.

As for the Scroll of Shadow, depend on whether you plan to switch to mage or light armor or want to save mana. I save these scrolls just in case because the scroll's effect does stack with spell counterparts and can save a lot of mana in the long run. In a round where monsters can one shot you regardless of your 90% armor mitigation or 1 million HP, sometimes you have to have relies on luck of the Russian Roulette, that is where double Shadow Veils comes in

This post has been edited by Coma: Nov 20 2012, 04:04

Not being on top is good, that usually means everyone playing this game actually understand the play build, the strategies, the value of a certain piece of equipment, etc etc

I feel you, but I think there's a lot to learn. I just started myself and have benefited massively from this thread. I also try to remember everything, including what doesn't apply to me, because for example I sense I would be interested in part-time magery after I eventually get to 200+. And I've seen a lot of you correct each other, so there's something to be learned by everyone!

And probably by the time I figure it out there will be a version change and everything will get interesting again.

As will be fairly obvious, I'm a Dark/Holy Mage, but I'm approaching 300 and I want to know what I should really be looking into from this point on. I mean, I have full sets of Shade and Power armor in my other slots, but I'd like to know what kinds of suffixes would be best, as well as if I should go DW or 2H for which set. This is primarily because the 220+ arenas take FOREVER with my current set. I mean, it's great that I only need to use 1 or 2 mana pots getting to the ladies on Nightmare, but taking over fifty rounds per Legendary, manually switching between smite, disintegrate, and soul reaper, mixing it up with magic missile and straight up pounding for ether theft? I just get bored, and it takes me two or three hours to finish one, sitting down for three or four of them before losing interest and wandering away. So yeah, I'd definitely like to have a different option when I go for the Dovahkiin Title in another 40 levels. (Do I get to keep my Damage and Evade boosts when it's equipped?)

Also, I have a crap-ton of weapons and equipment, so I can probably try it out rather quickly, and I should probably get around to setting up a shop. (IMG:[invalid] style_emoticons/default/rolleyes.gif)

Also also, does Void act as if monsters have no "defense", or -100 "defense"? And just confirming, Astral or Demonic Strike are the best add-on types, yes? Based on the Monster Lab Resistance/Weakness chart, it technically should be, at least, but does that pan out?

Innate Arcana: Haste, Spark of Life, Spirit Shield, with upkeep of 2.08 MP/round, actual upkeep of ~0.37 MP/round

My Primary Equipment Set:
Staff, Head, Body, Hand, Legs, Feet



Thoughts/Suggestions/Comments?
Oh man, Wall of Text. If you made it here, thanks for listening/reading!

If you still plan to stay as mage, then stay, what has worked post-200 generally works even into 300s. You dont have to change at this point, unlike the transition between pre-200 and post-200, unless you want to become bolder and risker.

Shade: Shadowdancer, followed by Fleet; Mace or Club + Rapier is highly recommended
Power: Slaughter, followed by Protection, Balance; Estoc is most popular and best choice, followed by Mace and then Scythe

220+ Arenas, go for DW or get ethereal Estoc of Slaughter, you will need to use Spirit Stance + Weapon skill combo to finish off the Schoolgirls. Elemental mages have quicker rounds than Hemidall/Fenrir mages due to weakness exploit. Unless you have exquisite quality or above Hemidall/Fenrir with said quality Katalox of Destruction, you are pretty much the same way you go.

Dovahkiin only grants AoE stun and offers no additional stat bonus. Not recommended for use, especially not as mage

Void only ignore monster's specific mitigation (such as Crushing and Piercing), not physical mitigation. Which is why ethereal estoc is most popular, because it can bypass both specific and physical mitigations when you procced PA (the lowest physical mitigation possible is 0%). Elemental Strikes are highly depend on the monsters, for example Hallowed is ideal choice for FSM (due to weakness) Elemental strikes start to lose efficiency as monsters gain more boost from Elemental Resistance, Eila the 501th, for example, is not weak to Elec or Wind anymore and has became resistant to other element types.

Ability Points, get Weaken and Imperil. Dont use Lifesteam, it is useless, cost too much mana and is not even remotely helpful. The main reason why you have to spend 50 rounds for each Girl as mage is because you dont have Imperil. I would invest in both tiers of Forbidden and Divine, so I could cast Tier 2 to proc and finish off with Tier 1 and explosion

Dont use Redwood, its stat is too mediocre, try Katalox staff instead for Forbidden/Divine damage boost. Try to get exquisite or better quality Phase, it is expensive but worth the price

This post has been edited by Coma: Nov 20 2012, 04:52

Elemental mages have quicker rounds than Hemidall/Fenrir mages due to weakness exploit.

No, schoolgirls (which are the tedious parts) are resistant to all elemental spells, so holy/dark would be much faster. Except Konata, my mistake, magic missile?

AOE spells do more damage than single target, judging from spell damage calculations from wiki. Imperil + katalox staff should be priority, redwood blows. Better EDB phases as well as for one element (holy or dark), using the other only for resistant monsters and explosions. Also, perhaps shaving some stats from STR and DEX and reallocating into INT and WIS.

Most of this is compiled from what's been asked and answered here previously, so I can't personally account for accuracy.

This post has been edited by fishinsea: Nov 20 2012, 07:17

No, schoolgirls (which are the tedious parts) are resistant to all elemental spells, so holy/dark would be much faster.

Except Konata, who is weak against wind and resistant against holy/dark. The most annoying schoolgirl for holy/dark mages (IMG:[invalid] style_emoticons/default/sad.gif)

You're right with the rest, I shit on the other 3 schoolgirls, especially with Imperil up (IMG:[invalid] style_emoticons/default/biggrin.gif)

Sub-question, I don't have SV but I have a bunch of scrolls of shadow for some reason, should I just sell them since I don't evade anyhow?

I think low level need credit (to buy better equipment) more than scroll.

Thoughts/Suggestions/Comments?
Oh man, Wall of Text. If you made it here, thanks for listening/reading!

at least train to max primary proficiencys.
also not be superfluous to train 20+ more Ability Boost and IL to 10lvl all stuff
upd: also you need better equipment. lots of good sup+ phase in wts threads.
upd2: but i'm just yesterday bought almost half of them .) good luck with others.

This post has been edited by irvin123455: Nov 20 2012, 09:14

Thoughts/Suggestions/Comments?
Oh man, Wall of Text. If you made it here, thanks for listening/reading!

Well....first, make sure you are playing in the correct difficulty (normal).
Of course, you equips need to be upgraded, especially your staff (which will need a huge boost). Katalox of destruction is a good all-round choice, especially those with 35+ MDB. You should also get some armors with better EDB/INT/WIS, preferably with AGI. You should check the equip range page in wiki. Try to build a full set of fenrir/heimdall; it seems to be the better choice than mixing in most situations.

Then it's about the strategy:
If you worry about death, then kill off most of the enemies with a holy/dark cycle first. If you don't, then hit the schoolgirl with magic missile till CM procs.
Then, if you need extra MP, whack the schoolgirl with staff to proc ET. If you don't, hit it with holy/dark AOE cycle. Or if you're strong enough, hit it with holy AOE spell again and again.
You can add imperil into the mix, but I usually try to estimate if I actually need imperil: if you need less mana to kill without imperil, you don't need that.
As for konata, my personal choice is soul fire + soul burst, but it seems imperil + wind 3 is the better choice now.

You may still be using the same amount of turns; however, it will become so routine that you don't need to think what you should do.

This post has been edited by varst: Nov 20 2012, 09:38

My Primary Equipment Set:
Staff, Head, Body, Hand, Legs, Feet

Seriously, get a Katalox. Also, either go full heimdall or full fenrir. Don't mix the two.

Oddly enough, I have a MUCH easier time doing DwD on IWBTH in my wind set. A few weeks ago I gave it a try in my holy set and it was nothing short of a disaster. (IMG:[invalid] style_emoticons/default/blink.gif)

Oddly enough, I have a MUCH easier time doing DwD on IWBTH in my wind set. A few weeks ago I gave it a try in my holy set and it was nothing short of a disaster. (IMG:[invalid] style_emoticons/default/blink.gif)

Judging from your Legendary Tempestuous Ebony Staff of Destruction, you probably have a way better wind set than holy set (IMG:[invalid] style_emoticons/default/laugh.gif) .

Judging from your Legendary Tempestuous Ebony Staff of Destruction, you probably have a way better wind set than holy set (IMG:[invalid] style_emoticons/default/laugh.gif) .

Actually, I haven't used that staff yet. After you have Economizer 5 on something, it's hard to go back to anything less. (IMG:[invalid] style_emoticons/default/heh.gif)

The wind set's magic score is only about 3000 points higher. While that's probably significant, it's hard to envision it being significant enough to explain the increase in tediousness that I experienced. I think it was more because of strategy; by this point I'm probably just too hard-wired to use wind and wasn't used to using holy on IWBTH. Or maybe I'm just way off the mark and the difference in magic score really does explain everything.

Actually, I haven't used that staff yet. After you have Economizer 5 on something, it's hard to go back to anything less. (IMG:[invalid] style_emoticons/default/heh.gif)

The wind set's magic score is only about 3000 points higher. While that's probably significant, it's hard to envision it being significant enough to explain the increase in tediousness that I experienced. I think it was more because of strategy; by this point I'm probably just too hard-wired to use wind and wasn't used to using holy on IWBTH. Or maybe I'm just way off the mark and the difference in magic score really does explain everything.

If you're using imperil, it's probably the reason. It should have about 25% elemental defense reduction, and together with the 3000 pts (probably about 20%) bonus, it's possible to have comparable damage output. (Though holy/dark is the 'weakness', it's only -1% IIRC).

If you're using imperil, it's probably the reason. It should have about 25% elemental defense reduction, and together with the 3000 pts (probably about 20%) bonus, it's possible to have comparable damage output. (Though holy/dark is the 'weakness', it's only -1% IIRC).

Oh yeah; I always use Imperil. I keep forgetting about its elemental resistance reduction. In that light it does seem to make sense then.

Next time I have a go at it I should give Frost Spikes a try as well, since Freezing Limbs also reduces wind resistance. (I wish Spike Shield procs were more frequent.)

Talking about Imperil spell, do light melee really need that spell? Cause i can only see its usefulness in boss battle; even though with weaken and silence are must, adding imperil is quite hard and inefficient ( especially if i use DW skills witch add long-lasting blind effect)
And what about Absorb spell, do you guys find it usefull post 200? cause at my lvl it's a total waste of mana or channeling since it can't seem to absorb anything even after 50 rounds of nightmare arena
I'm thinking about relocate 10AP from those 2 to Spirit Tank, OC or EXP tank.

Talking about Imperil spell, do light melee really need that spell? Cause i can only see its usefulness in boss battle; even though with weaken and silence are must, adding imperil is quite hard and inefficient ( especially if i use DW skills witch add long-lasting blind effect)
And what about Absorb spell, do you guys find it usefull post 200? cause at my lvl it's a total waste of mana or channeling since it can't seem to absorb anything even after 50 rounds of nightmare arena
I'm thinking about relocate 10AP from those 2 to Spirit Tank, OC or EXP tank.

You don't want too many debuff on boss, as it'd make curse waving a real bitch. Unless you can dw 2 rapiers and tank (which is not recommended for longer/harder fight). Beside, melee only benefit from -25% pmi, which is totally useless when you've already had pa proc with you.

Absorb can only absorb magical attack, which is not that common at your lv. The rate is only 75%, and the mana regen from 7.5% to 12.5% at max, doesn't worth it. Better off with sv instead (even if you're heavy melee)

Talking about Imperil spell, do light melee really need that spell? Cause i can only see its usefulness in boss battle; even though with weaken and silence are must, adding imperil is quite hard and inefficient ( especially if i use DW skills witch add long-lasting blind effect)
And what about Absorb spell, do you guys find it usefull post 200? cause at my lvl it's a total waste of mana or channeling since it can't seem to absorb anything even after 50 rounds of nightmare arena
I'm thinking about relocate 10AP from those 2 to Spirit Tank, OC or EXP tank.

Imperil is useless. Even if you use elemental weapons.

Trying out a mage build since I've started to find that killing things one by one takes forever and a half. Focus seems to be a skill for mages, as it makes spells more accurate and restores some mana, but it takes 25 overcharge to use. How exactly do you build overcharge as a mage? I've tried hitting stragglers with my staff, but I tend to miss or barely do too little to finish it off and take more damage than the amount I could cure from the MP restored by focusing twice.

Talking about Imperil spell, do light melee really need that spell? Cause i can only see its usefulness in boss battle; even though with weaken and silence are must, adding imperil is quite hard and inefficient ( especially if i use DW skills witch add long-lasting blind effect)
And what about Absorb spell, do you guys find it usefull post 200? cause at my lvl it's a total waste of mana or channeling since it can't seem to absorb anything even after 50 rounds of nightmare arena
I'm thinking about relocate 10AP from those 2 to Spirit Tank, OC or EXP tank.

Absorb can be useful if you cast it off a Channeling during a high-difficulty battle mode, where it can take many hits to defeat monsters. At your level, putting AP into Absorb was probably a bit premature; if you reallocate AP now, you may want to revisit Absorb in the future.

Trying out a mage build since I've started to find that killing things one by one takes forever and a half. Focus seems to be a skill for mages, as it makes spells more accurate and restores some mana, but it takes 25 overcharge to use. How exactly do you build overcharge as a mage? I've tried hitting stragglers with my staff, but I tend to miss or barely do too little to finish it off and take more damage than the amount I could cure from the MP restored by focusing twice.

Focus can be suicide for mages. Overcharge is built up as you use your staff to hit things with Coalesced Mana in order to proc Ether Theft. Other times you can just hit weak stragglers with your staff to finish them off and build up Overcharge that way. Because Focus recovers MP, it can be an efficient way to "skip turns" while you wait for Ether Theft to run down. Usually Ether Theft is done in safe situations so there's no risk in using Focus to kill turns; the target is alone, may be Weakened, and/or the damage it deals can be compensated by Regen or Regen II.

Focus as a source of magic accuracy is too risky. And since Ether Theft isn't very helpful at low levels because the return is low, and because your Supportive spells don't last very long so you don't have many disposable turns, you don't really have a reason to use Focus in this context either.