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First Mage playthrough in DA:O/ Arcane Warrior


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#1
MegaToxic

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So i am playing DA:O again but this time I want to be a mage. I made a Female Elf. I have plans on going Arcane Warrior but I am not sure what to do to build up to it. I would probably always stay behin enemy lines and just cast spells like crazy. So can anyone maybe help me out here. I know "Trial and Error" is the best way to learn but when there is a big community of people I thought hey why not ask.

Thanks!

Modifié par ToxicDragon, 04 septembre 2013 - 10:55 .


#2
MegaToxic

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...I thought this would happen. Many views no comments. Just asking for some help.

#3
TBastian

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"Always stay behind enemy lines and just cast spells like crazy" doesn't really work with Arcane Warrior. The Arcane Warrior was designed to be a frontline character. You're better off picking Spirit Healer and/or Blood Mage. I'd suggest Shapeshifter but since you don't play on the PC it would be too much hassle.

Anyway the thing is you can make mages near immortal with just gear and spells. You don't have to pick a specialization to do it. It's one of the reasons why mages are considered OP. To improve your survivability you need 4 particular spells: Heal, Force Field, Rock Armor and Arcane Shield. After that just stack defense (all your gear should be +defense where possible) or dodge (you can reach ~40% dodge with a complete dodge set) and between Heal/Force Field/poultices your mage should be able to tackle entire groups of hostiles all by him/herself.

Your spell choice reflects what type of mage you're trying to make. If you're not interested in a creating any particular kind of mage then just get the staples: Mana Clash, Cone of Cold, the Hexes, possibly another AoE crowd control spell like Sleep or Mass Paralyze and possibly a good nuke like the fire line or Virulent Walking Bomb. For dedicated nukers you'll want Cone of Cold, Flame Blast, Fireball, and Shock (ie Fireball and cone spells, cast these repeatedly until everything dies). Controllers (for people who love crowd control spells) will want more Entropy spells and the glyphs. Support types will want to pick more Creation spells like Regenerate, the glyphs and Haste. If you're interested in spell combos you can check the wiki for the spells you'll need. You'll have a lot of extra spell points. I'd personally recommend getting Spell Shield. I use it just to spite emissaries who try to use Crushing Prison on me while I'm busy frying darkspawn.

Back to specializations, Blood Mage gives you Blood Wound which is a great CC spell against living hostiles and Spirit Healer gives you Group Heal, one of the best healing spells in the game (it's good enough even for people who solo). All the other talents are low-mid priority. You can still pick Arcane Warrior if you really want to, I just don't think you'll ever use those talents once you've taken the steps to improve your survivability. If you do take Arcane Warrior then consider taking sustained spells like Miasma/Haste and hit rate-improving spells like Heroice Offense and Weakness. Besides being useful for grabbing enemy attention (these spells work like mini-taunts) you can use these spells to help you hit things, should you ever decide to swap your staff for a sword .

Modifié par TBastian, 05 septembre 2013 - 01:34 .


#4
MegaToxic

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Thanks for replying. Well I have no problem being a frontline Mage. I want to be able to take enemies out quick though. I saw in the wiki that the spirit skill tree had the most spells that can be used while holding a sword but im not sure if those are attack spells. I like using elements but most of them cant be done while holding a sword. I would end up going Blooc mage also. The spells you mentioned in your third paragraph, those would work with arcane warrior..or does that not matter? For stats I have been only putting into magic..but I am not sure if that will work well for arcane warrior.

#5
TBastian

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Weakness can be cast with your weapon drawn, and Miasma is a sustained so no biggie. Heroic Offense must be cast with your weapon sheathed but a single casting lasts 20 seconds or so. Consider raising Dex a bit if you plan on swinging your sword a lot, but most of your stats should be in Magic and perhaps Cunning (for Persuasion). Most people are fine with any number between your base Dex  to 30 Dex (+bonuses from quests/items).
The most notable Spirit nuke is Virulent Walking Bomb. It also happens to be the most dangerous spell in the game friendly fire-wise if you play in nightmare difficulty, but used correctly it can take out groups of hostiles on its own.

It is possible to play your AW as a heavy armor-using spellsword who casts a spell or two before swinging his sword at his enemies, especially if you decide to take Blood Mage. Blood Magic can mitigate the effects of fatigue somewhat, so you should be able to trade a bit of HP for several castings. Thanks to your nukes and high autoattack damage you will have good DPS. You can also pretty much outlast anything at high levels anyway, though when the expansion classes become available your DPS options will really start to widen a bit.

Each specialization seems to reflect a particular magic school, though only in spirit. In practice there's really no reason to limit yourself to any particular school. Anyway AW reflects Spirit, which is about protection. Spirit Healer reflects Creation (healing), Blood Mage reflect Entropy (control) and Shapeshifter reflects Primal (destruction).

Modifié par TBastian, 05 septembre 2013 - 05:19 .


#6
keeneaow

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It depend on if you play on PC or console, and on if you have RtO DLC.
On PC your mana regeneration is limited, and this limit the amount of sustainables,
the full AW tree is a given, Shimmering Shield is bliss.
I start out with rock armor and spell shield, one vs physical attacks, the other vs magic attacks.
I then add spell wisp, maxing out arcane mastery, maxing out mana clash tree,
and flaming weapons, and force field, if you dont make another AW, then make telekinetic weapons as well.

I go straight to 42 magic, with perhaps a couple of points in constitution,
then increase dexterity to 25 together with fade points, then pump up magic again and a few points more in constitution.

The only armor and arms on PC for AW is Cailans stuff,
and the only specialization for me is blood magic up to blood wound.

you will stack spell wisp and spell might before activate flaming weapons, after which you can switch off at least spell might.

Modifié par keeneaow, 05 septembre 2013 - 10:22 .


#7
MegaToxic

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Yeah I have for console and I have the DA:O Ultimate Edition. So yeah I have all DLC.

#8
keeneaow

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Ok, i go with sword/reapers cudgel + dagger until cailans stuff, the flaming weapons add a lot of extra damage if flaming weapons was boosted at activation by wisp and might, and two weapons hit faster than one. On console you probably have the mana-regeneration luxury of being able to dualwield the entire game. On PC i'm stuck with Cailans shield for mana regeneration.

#9
keeneaow

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double post and cant delete post

Modifié par keeneaow, 05 septembre 2013 - 09:30 .


#10
Ferretinabun

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TBastian wrote...
 (all your gear should be +defense where possible)


The other way to go is + mana regen. Shimmering Shield is basically your 'make me invincible' spell but at a huge maintanence cost (10 mana per second). But it is possible to get enough + mana regen gear to offset the cost completely and run Shimmering Shield indefinitely. It's a bit of an exploit, but then this is Arcane Warrior you're playing as...

Here is just such a gear setup I stole from youtube:

Evon the Great's Mail - 1 point per second
Wade's Superior Dragonscale Gloves - 0.5 points per second.
Wade's Superior Dragonscale Boots - 0.5 points per second.
Duncan's Sword - 2 points per second (From Return to Ostagar DLC)
Andruil's Blessing - 2 points per second.
The Wicked Oath - 1 point per second.
Improved Combat Training (skill) - 0.5 points per second.
Fade Shroud (talent, active with Combat Magic) - 1 point per second.
Base mana regen - 1 point per second.

Total - 9.5 points per second - but it seems it is rounded up to 10.


And here is that build in action:

/watch?v=Ckl6XIyD1Y4

Modifié par Ferretinabun, 06 septembre 2013 - 09:23 .


#11
keeneaow

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You can to the above add
longrunners cap helmet +0.5 reg mana
mana <10% +3.5 reg mana
The High Regard of House Dace amulet +1 reg mana

But since you play PC, Cailans stuff is unbeatable
Cailans arms (sword + shield) = +5 reg mana
Calilans armor +5 life reg

In awakening it gets better
http://social.biowar.../index/17001915

ed, and it get even better yet if you dress up in armor that does not transfer,
such as wicked oath ring, the ring go away, but the +1 mana reg stick to the character
http://social.biowar.../index/17056304

Modifié par keeneaow, 06 septembre 2013 - 10:37 .