Video example. I'll be referring to this video to help explain some of the things going on here.
Intro:
The Mage’s staff attack is very much maligned for the long duration on the fifth attack animation. Every class has a long fifth attack animation, however mages do not have the luxury of passive increased attack speed talents and items that minimize the effect for Warriors and Rogues. Combat can sometimes involve shooting and running, so getting stuck on that fifth attack animation will often mean the difference between life and death. Understanding the mechanics of your auto attacks will go a long way to removing some frustration of playing a mage, and once mastered, will ultimately enhance your enjoyment of combat.
Note that the 5th swing does not lose out on DPS, because the damage is proportionate to length of the wing.
Attack sequence:
The auto attack sequence has 5 swings. After your fifth swing, you will start back at the first swing of the sequence. The first 4 swing animations are short and you are free to move at any time during the swing. The fifth swing animation is significantly longer, and you will find that sometimes you cannot move until the animation is complete. That is what we want to avoid. The most important thing to learn is that if your fifth swing comes immediately after your fourth swing, without moving or switching targets, you can move out of it, or cancel it. You can follow up by immediately attacking again to restart the cycle at the first swing, or cast a spell, use a health potion, run, etc. On the other hand, if you (a) move OR switch targets between the fourth and fifth swing, and (
your fifth swing follows your fourth swing within ~2 seconds, you will not be able to cancel the fifth swing. You can see this happen when I screw up here.Cancelling swings:
A swing only can be cancelled by the player by moving. (Getting knocked back, knocked down, or stunned will also cancel it.) It even counts if you tap the directional key so slightly you can’t even tell you moved. A swing which can be cancelled can be cancelled at any point, from the first frame of animation to the last frame.
Counting Staff swings:
In order to avoid the dreaded fifth swing animation, you will have to learn to count your staff swings. The most important thing to know is that a swing counts even if you cancel it. If you cancel it very early, you can tell that you have cancelled it by an animation that accompanies every swing. The fifth swing is most noticeable – it has a loud BOOM and a flashy animation depending on your staff element. However, even the other 4 swings have a subtle animation of their own, and you can learn to pick up on them as you play.
You can also use the special animation of the fourth swing to help if you lose count. The fourth swing is just as quick as the first 3 swings and you can always cancel out of it, however you can identify it by the shoot-behind-the-back move your mage does.
Restarting the attack sequence:
There are only 2 ways to restart the attack sequence.
1) Completing the attack sequence. Once the fifth animation has gone off, whether it completed or was canceled partway through, the sequence will begin at the first swing animation.
2) Refraining from attacking for about 2 seconds. Sometimes you have to cancel out of your fourth swing (seen here), or finish your fourth swing but move before you start the fifth swing. When you are kiting, in many cases you will not have the luxury of being able to finish the attack sequence because the long fifth animation will get you hit or killed. Simply keep running around for about 2 seconds and the sequence will restart.
What also works effectively is casting a spell. Unless you're hasted, most spells in your arsenal take about 2 seconds to cast, effectively restarting the attack sequence by casting. The only spell I've tried that fires too quickly is Spirit Bolt. Even summoning the Mabari works.
Mastering your auto attacks:
a) Keybind your “attack nearest target” function to an easily accessible key. I use R. Once you get your timing down, you will be an auto attack turret where you can swing 4 times, tap any direction immediately at the start of the fifth animation, then tap R again to resume auto attacking at swing 1.
The video shows what you should be aiming for. Doing it hasted is even a trickier. Notice how for a large part of the video you don't see the 5th swing, although I do screw up a couple times at the end.
Use spells (except Spirit Bolt) immediately after the fourth animation for maximum DPS. If you have the luxury of standing still to attack, swing 4 times before tossing out a Chain Lightning or Winter’s Grasp. Then swing 4 more times and use another spell, even if it’s re-summoning your Mabari. That minimizes the cancelling you have to do.
Modifié par thendcomes, 02 septembre 2011 - 10:43 .
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