11 réponses à ce sujet

[Meiskwabby]

 Alright! This is my second play through of DAO 

(Beacuseeeee my first time around I didn't get Liana, and I messed up a bunch of other crap, so I "new gamed" right before facing the Archie.... so!)

I'm one main quest away from the landsmeet, and I believe my main Mage, is at lv 16. 
She has the Specs. of spirit healer and arcane warrior, and thru my first "play through" I never did give her a spec. the SH is insanely useful if I don't want to drag Wynee around, and I've always liked the idea of having a mage with both magical and physical prowess.

However since it's already so late in the game, and I'm running out of things to kill until the final battle, (granted I still have Ozamar to go through, and theres that whole Howe thing) but I feel like that won't give me enough time to really experience the amazing-ness.

(I'm even temped to "new game" again so I can gain the specs. early on since they carry over, riiiight? I'd be really pissed if they didn't)

 So here is my main question, although feel free to comment on my earlier praddling- 

What is the best strategy for using an effecting SH/AW mage that is more so spell-casting oriented without consuming a butt load of Lyrium?
I do want to go into combat when needed, but I do like the idea of a mage who can be in the front lines AND still cast spells. 
Therefore I will not condone a crazy amount of fatigue, I'd like it under 10% if any at all. :3

So you see my problemo! Think long and hard XD 
I'm open to suggestion, but this is what I'm going for mainly. 

Thank youuu! 

[Meiskwabby]

*I'm also just considering another play-through because I didn't get Shale either, don't have the funds in zee wallet for psn

[Crippledcarny]

The specs do carry over. But it sounds like you want to play an AW without any of the drawbacks. Which just isn't going to happen. Well unless you mod, but you're on PS3 so that's not going to happen, either.

I know a lot of people found AW to be amazing fun. But I thought it was an endless source of boredom. They don't focus on casting at all as they have to put up their weapon for most spells which takes ages as well as a ton of mana because of their fatigue level. Their main focus is a select number of buffing spells to make them basically impossible to kill, but their only real way to kill anything else is to sit and auto attack for like 7dmg.

Really if you want some fun melee, make a rogue. If you want to cast stay with a standard mage. I guess you could try and get the best of both worlds by keeping around two or more armor sets and just juggling them around, but really that seems like more work than it's worth.


Also, if you don't have the Shale DLC yet don't buy it by itself. Just save up and pick the Ultimate Edition. Even though you'll be rebuying the main game you should still save money on all the DLC + Awakening.

Modifié par Crippledcarny, 23 janvier 2011 - 04:52 .

[Elhanan]

One does not have to play AW as a Warrior, though that is viable. I found it great fun to play a heavily armored (or at least a non hat wearing dress maker's manequin) spellslinger; staff firing away, or weapons ready when some simpleton decides to close.
Try Willpower 20-30 base; maybe 30 DEX is you wish to boost defense and utilize daggers and more runes, and max Magic.

Modifié par Elhanan, 23 janvier 2011 - 05:06 .

[Zombie Chow]

Hi Meiskwabby, I'm actually in the Final Battle as a Arcane Warrior (previously I played as a caster Mage and a tank Warrior), so I've actually thought long/hard on this already, plus I've tested it first-hand.

There's basically 2 paths you can take, either as an Armoured Caster or a Jedi Swordsman.  In practice, you're best off focusing on either one.  I'll just summarise all I've learned specific to your needs (based on what you shared).

What is the best strategy for using an effecting SH/AW mage that is more so spell-casting oriented without consuming a butt load of Lyrium?
I do want to go into combat when needed, but I do like the idea of a mage who can be in the front lines AND still cast spells. 
Therefore I will not condone a crazy amount of fatigue, I'd like it under 10% if any at all. :3

Armoured Caster

Investment - you only need to choose the Arcane Warrior specialisation, then spend 1 Spell point on Combat Magic (to equip armour), then acquire good armour sets...that can actually increase your overall mana.

Improvements - you'll simply be a better caster because you have better armour as well as the set bonuses.  However, armour attracts enemies as well, which actually can be a good thing to draw aggression away from your party members (then you could even hit them all with a Mind Blast).  Net-net, IMHO this is a no-brainer.

Items - so after becoming an Arcane Warrior and spending that 1 point on Combat Magic, it's all down to the armour set you get.  I only had 2 sets, but that's all I needed.

The 1st was Diligence, which was what I used in the Deep Roads (chestplate from Haven, boots from the Redcliffe smith after saving his daughter, gloves from the Shaperate).  Although it had fatigue, it also gave a Willpower set bonus that off-set that penalty...net-net, I think I had more mana wearing this armour than robes.

The 2nd set was Wade's Superior Dragonscale Armour (not the Dragonplate), which I used in Denerim.  You need all the drake/dragonscales from Haven.  It has around 24% fatigue, but also subtracts 20% fatigue, thus it only has 4% fatigue.  Plus, I noticed I get a lot more mana from this than from robes, but I'm not sure why!

I actually bought Evon the Great's Mail, which can actually substitute the Dragonscale Armour's chestplate, yet retain the set bonus (a little bit of a secret bonus).  That's really great.  Having such a good experience, I made Wynne into an Arcane Warrior, now wearing the Diligence Armour.

Jedi Swordsman

Investment - in addition to becoming an Arcane Warrior, to make this effective you have to invest a lot.  You'll need all 4 Arcane Warrior abilities, Arcane Shield, Rock Armour, and Miasma (which means you have to get its 2 pre-requisites).  That's basically 9 spells.  Then, you'll be at full fatigue, so you're trading off all your spellcasting.

Improvements - it turns out this is really good for certain fights where you have face a few very tough opponents, such as Jarvia the Dwarf gang boss, Broodmother, Branka, Ser Cauthrian, and the Ogre fights.  Is it worth it for the investment?  In all honesty, probably not, but I got to say my character really feels like the heroic front-line Warden rather than a support Mage.  I love watching him getting those slow-motion messy kills consistently.

Items - everything with the armoured caster, plus you'll want to get good weapons/runes/shield.  In my case, I'm using Spellweaver as my sword always, 2 Grandmaster Paralyze or Silverite +10 darkspawn damage runes, then the Fade Wall.

---

My conclusion is that, in your situation, you'll just want the simpler Armoured Caster.  That gives you the "best bang for the buck" without you having to change all your tactics.  The Jedi Swordsman not only needs a lot more investment, but requires a lot of planning in advance, plus it'll force you to play in a different way (my Mage is now a weird Warrior).  Hope this helps.

[Crippledcarny]

Zombie Chow wrote...

The 2nd set was Wade's Superior Dragonscale Armour (not the Dragonplate), which I used in Denerim.  You need all the drake/dragonscales from Haven.  It has around 24% fatigue, but also subtracts 20% fatigue, thus it only has 4% fatigue.  Plus, I noticed I get a lot more mana from this than from robes, but I'm not sure why!

Because +stam on a mage is the same as + mana.

[Addai]

If you haven't gotten to the Landsmeet, you still have a lot of game left to play. Calling the LM doesn't end the game. As for stamina management, others have given good advice. Look for stamina-boosting equipment. Also consider whether you really need the sparkly shield the AW spec gives you. I rarely used it. AW is really fun with mods, but even unmodded, if you carefully plan your spells you can get useful ones that don't require you to sheathe your weapon. Check out the Arcane Warrior Spellcasting page on the wiki.

As others have said, I mostly used staff/ spellcasting on my first AW and only switched to melee when enemies closed. Sort of like switching between a bow and melee for a rogue. Getting the Spellweaver sword is a big help. Also having a bit of dex to up your hit rate.

[Faelix_Majere]

Just a quick question. If you go for the armored caster build. So you have an Armor on and a staff and is ranged. Will you still have problems casting spell, or is it exactly the same as when you wear robes?

[Crippledcarny]

Basically the exact same. Spells will just cost more mana the more fatigue you have. Higher armor = higher fatigue. However some armor sets gives bonus that greatly reduce fatigue, making them worth using for casting. You'll still be missing out on +magic and +spellpower from robes however. So it's basically a trade of dmg for def.

[Zombie Chow]

Hi Crippledcarny, thanks for clearing that mana question up.



Hi Faleix_Majere, as Crippledcarny said, casting's the same in armour as in robes. It sounds like you're familiar with Bioware's other games like Neverwinter Nights where there's penalties for casting in armour...the Arcane Warrior does not have them. Actually, it can be argued casting's slightly improved in armour because your spell doesn't get interrupted, thanks to damage protection.

[JJDrakken]

This was my Melee Mage

http://social.biowar...na_id=287924878

Spec's where Arcane Warrior/Blood Mage/Battle Mage/something(you get a 4th later on, I don't remember what I picked)

You can see gear he was wearing, I he toggle machine, Combat Magic, Stone Armor, Arcane Shield, Death Aura, Miasma, Some others.

JJ

[Estyss Eon]

You might know this but there's a special sword when you fight a AW in a special area.

It's called the Spellweaver. And I love it. Because it has a few fune slots. And it's badass.

I think you neeeeeeeeeed a healer in your party no matter how much Morrigan protests. Either way.

Aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaand

An Arcane warrior is good for when your spell erupting from your staff is brushed off like a fly.
Say for example, a revenant is immune to ice and... I *think* nature damage?

Well just pull out your Spellweaver and start hammering on the helmet. [3

Okay maybe not. In that situation it's better to have ranged weapons.

I just love the fact that you can go (when you're a AW)

weeeeeak ----------> KICK ASS.

If they're spell oriented well, maybe... boost up the willpower(if you can)? The deeper the mana pool the more spells you can cast without gagging like a mabari that's been fed human flesh.

Err...But I assume you know this, and I feel like an idiot now.

Is the PSN.... different from the PC gameplay? :S I hope not