80 réponses à ce sujet

[tetracycloide]

Sylvius the Mad wrote...

Do people seriously start a battle with buffs up? Why?

Some buffs are only useful at the onset of battle.  Spell might and spell wisp, for example, aren't useful after all mana has been expended.  Others are only useful after mana has been expended.  I imagin the ideal use of death syphon would be exactly the method you discribe.

[Gaidren]

Sylvius the Mad wrote...

Do people seriously start a battle with buffs up? Why?
Enter the battle without the buffs active, and use your mana. As soon as your mana level drops below that that will be withheld by the buffs, cast the buffs. You get the benefit of the buffs for the whole fight, but you don't have to do without the mana they withhold.

I certainly do that with some buffs, but some are just so good that I want them up 100% of the time, mana cost be damned (Haste, for example).


Haste x2 is just amazing, you can run over to a mage from a mile away and stun him before he finishes a nasty spell.  I really wonder if Haste stacking with Haste is intended or a bug....oh well, good times.

[Kerio]

Jack-Nader wrote...

I would actually like to see the upkeep cost gone in future patches. The broad fatigue penalty is more than sufficient and it would sure simplify things.

That would certainly make mages even more powerful; consider the following ...

1) Arcane Shield (30 Upkeep +5% Fatigue)

2) Rock Armour (40 Upkeep +5% Fatigue)

3) Flaming Weapons (50 Upkeep +5% Fatigue)

4) Spell Wisp (30 Upkeep +5% Fatigue)

5) Arcane Bolt (15 Cost)

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Right now -- a mage with a 170 mana-pool would barely be able to upkeep the first four spells (170 > 150 = 50 + 40 + 30 + 30) while occasionally casting Arcane Bolt (18 = 15 * 1.20 Cost) | (1.20 = 1.00 + 4 * 0.05).

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Converting the upkeep into activation costs and the question becomes where do you draw the line for the increase in fatigue?  Let us take it to the extreme and assume each sustained spell has +25% Fatigue (five times the current value); our mage with only a 170 mana-pool would still be able to cast any spell rather than just the Arcane Bolt! (170 > 160 = 80 * 2.00 Cost) | (2.00 = 1.00 + 4 * 0.25)

Even if we double the rate yet again to +50% Fatigue per sustained spell, the mage is still able to cast most spells (170 > 150 = 50 * 3.00 Cost) | (3.00 = 1.00 + 4 * 0.50).

Pushing it into the ridiculous, if we triple the rate yet again to +150% Fatigue per sustained spell, the mage would still be able to cast Arcane Bolt  (170 > 105 = 15 * 7.00 Cost) | (7.00 = 1.00 + 4 * 1.50) while barely being able to cast the forth sustained spell (170 > 165 = 30 * 5.50 Cost) | (5.50 = 1.00 + 3 * 1.50).
 
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While these examples are just hypothetical, they do demonstrate that the elimination of the Upkeep on sustained spells (or skills) would radically change the balance of the different classes and skill trees -- adjusting the Fatigue rate just isn't enough.

[lazorexplosion]

Lord Phoebus wrote...

I find insect swarm very useful and crushing prison to be crap as of 1.02. Insect swarm +VWB against an elite who's been hit with vulnerability and affliction hex is pretty nasty.

Petrify is also really nice since it's a physical resist instead of a mental resist, so it works against bosses who resist your other stuns, of course you need to take the horrible Earthquake to get it so it might not be worth it unless you're an AW and want Rock Armor (or you're wearing the Reaper's Vestments). Stone Fist is pretty handy too since it can shatter and it can interrupt an overwhelm or a grab. I'd say the 1st earth spell is good if you're going to for armor (mediocre otherwise), the second is good, the third is **** and the 4th is good.

I've been wondering about Arcane Shield myself, more to the point what happens if you're stacking +defence gear. The Magus' Warboots are +12 defence, the Liberterian's Cowl is another +12, First Enchanter Robes are +9 (Robes of Possession are +12 but they're Morrigan only), Buckle of the Winds is +3, Key to the City is a +2 to dex, Magister's Shield is another +6, That's +41 defence, Arcane Shield 10 +1 for every 10 points of spell power. Mages start with a 40 defence, but that's still 91 defence +spellpower/10. If you were specced as an Arcane Warrior it would be a 101 defence +spellpower/10 with combat magic and a 25% miss chance, and you could equip the champion's shield for another +15 defence (116+sp/10). Assuming you went with a 30 dex and 70 spellpower that would be a 143 defence (133 without Combat Magic), nothing but misses against anything but an elite. Certainly would make it easier to use cones and handle aggro against your mage. Of course this is a real fringe build...

Don't forget the possibility of heroic defense (20+0.2sp defense) or glyph of warding (30 defense). Or -attack spells like miasma. Could reach 200+ defence... Very interesting.

[Sylvius the Mad]

The 1.02 nerfs were not good. I've modded the original versions of those spells back into the game (except Shimmering Shield - that was a fix, not a nerf).

[Taritu]

What this thread mostly confirms for me is that well played mages trivialize the game.