Hi All,
Varric is one of my favorite char's since being introduced to him in DA2.
While I'm not sure I can make him as OP as he was in DA2, i'm struggling a little bit with his DPS and survivability. He's fine but rather mediocre so far (lvl 14-15)
Can anyone provide tips/tricks, commands, etc they use to get the DPS out of him?
(man I miss rhyming triplet!)
Also looking for specific skill trees and companion lists if anyone has fleshed them out.
Thanks!
Get the cd on crit passive in Artificer.
Get everything on the right side of archery.
Get It looked like it hurt and Cheap Shot in Sabotage
Watch Bianca becoming a turret and see the long shots being fired one by one!
Obviously, this requires that the whole team stacks crit (Go farm some greater Bear Hide from the Emerald Forest. They give a lot of crit chance!)
Things like Leaping Shot, Energy Barrage and Sera on Flask of Lightning will remove the CD of Varrics abilities. His own crit chance adds to this, and he also gains stamina on crit.
Guest_starlitegirl_*
I liked giving him poison. That felt useful in early game. Even just the first ability with the upgrade seemed to help as he felt pretty weak to me.
One of the things that bothers most players about Varric is that Bianca's upgrades are few and far between, and they do not scale as quickly as regular Bows do.
However, one of the highest level Bianca schematic can be found as soon as you get to Skyhold, in the Hissing Wastes. Discover the Sand Crags Camp and next to it there is one of Tombs of Fairel, where you can find the schematic and other high-quality loot (you might want to visit all the Tombs eventually, the loot is freaking good)
Also, one of the vendors at Skyhold sells Tier 3 schematics for Bianca's Parts, though I assume you must be level 16+ and/or have bought some of the upgrades she sells before the schematics are made available.
My Varric is now level 16, and he gets 34% Critical Chance from Bianca alone, out of total of 65%. I could bump it even higher crafting some Prowler Armor, but I decided to give him the Legion of the Dead Armor instead, simply because it looks badass.
As far as build is concerned, do as Matth85 stated above. The Artificier is an awesome specialization, both for gameplay and roleplay (something I've only discovered playing an Artificier Inquisitor), but the AI will often do stupid things, like overusing FallBack Plan or throwing Elemental Mines where no enemies would ever be hit. So you might want to manage what your Varric is doing, especially during though encounter.
Obviously, this requires that the whole team stacks crit (Go farm some greater Bear Hide from the Emerald Forest. They give a lot of crit chance!)
This part is well and good, until you realize that this will not likely happen until late in the game or possibly near endgame. Makes Varric look bad throughout most of the game, really.
For reference: Blackwall has a legion mace, crafted with 8 great bear hides. GBH (Great Bear Hide) gives, what, 1.75% crit chance per one used? That totals to only about 14% chance. Tack on a haft/grip with 7 great bear hides. That is another 12.25% crit chance. That totals to about 26.25% chance of critting. Not that bad, until you realize that that is actually low compared to a DD rogue, or an archer assassin.
Basically put, Varric is not that great until you have played for a long time.
A note: Not hating or saying you are wrong. Just pointing out that what you are saying is not really all that possible in early-to-mid game, when I feel crit chance would be all the more important.
Modifié par draken-heart, 19 décembre 2014 - 06:30 .
This part is well and good, until you realize that this will not likely happen until late in the game or possibly near endgame. Makes Varric look bad throughout most of the game, really.
Level 11-13 is end-game? Damn boy, you must be rushing!
This part is well and good, until you realize that this will not likely happen until late in the game or possibly near endgame. Makes Varric look bad throughout most of the game, really.
For reference: Blackwall has a legion mace, crafted with 8 great bear hides. GBH (Great Bear Hide) gives, what, 1.75% crit chance per one used? That totals to only about 14% chance. Tack on a haft/grip with 7 great bear hides. That is another 12.25% crit chance. That totals to about 26.25% chance of critting. Not that bad, until you realize that that is actually low compared to a DD rogue, or an archer assassin.
Basically put, Varric is not that great until you have played for a long time.
A note: Not hating or saying you are wrong. Just pointing out that what you are saying is not really all that possible in early-to-mid game, when I feel crit chance would be all the more important.
Varric is probably the character that suffers the most Pre-Skyhold. Without his Specialization and the lack of Bianca upgrades compared to regular Bows, one can not find any reason to bring him along other than bias.
Post-Skyhold however, I believe most experienced players would want to visit the Hissing Wastes to loot the Tombs of Fairel as soon as possible (the loot you can find there is on same level of what you find killing dragons, maybe better, and you will hardly encounter any enemy if you play smart) and Varric benefits hugely thereafter.
As I said before, at Level 16 my Varric has 65% Critical Chance, and that is using non-optimal Armor. This number could be increased to 75-80% otherwise. And I've reached level 16 with 45-ish hours played, which for completionists might be considered mid-game. I haven't completed any post-Skyhold areas yet except for Crestwood and partially Western Approach. Endgame is still far.
Besides, Blackwall doesn't need 26% Critical Chance. It helps, for sure, but for a Tank character it is not necessary. I think your Varric lacks Critical Chance because you haven't come across sufficient Bianca's upgrades.
Other than Great Bear hides, Lurker Scales helps a lot building Cunning and they can be easily found in the northern areas of Hissing Wastes.
Varric is probably the character that suffers the most Pre-Skyhold. Without his Specialization and the lack of Bianca upgrades compared to regular Bows, one can not find any reason to bring him along other than bias.
I don't quite agree on that. Pre-skyhold I managed to get Bianca to a respectable 100ish dps pretty early on. The only way to reach the same way via a bow would be to craft a tier 2 bow with an enchantment.
The fact that Bianca is only upgraded is also very nice. You can get an early Master Fire Rune pre-skyhold. I forgot where, though. Bianca is the best weapon to put it on, as you won't waste the effect.
Then again, I am rather anal about minmaxing... If you don't, then I agree -- it's easier to get Sera to a decent level pre Skyhold than Varric. Without specialization the difference between Sera and Varric as all weapon damage. One could just switch out whichever is better.
Though then comes the question: Can you stand Sera? 
I, for one, can not!
But, yes. The first thing I did on my last archer was to go right into Emerald Forest the second I had the chance - a la: level 13. A few bears later and I had enough skin to pump myself to 50% crit, Sera to 50% crit, my tank to 20% crit and Solas allready had 30% ish. Not enough to keep spamming Long shot and full draw -- but enough to faceroll the game from there.
I don't quite agree on that. Pre-skyhold I managed to get Bianca to a respectable 100ish dps pretty early on. The only way to reach the same way via a bow would be to craft a tier 2 bow with an enchantment.
The fact that Bianca is only upgraded is also very nice. You can get an early Master Fire Rune pre-skyhold. I forgot where, though. Bianca is the best weapon to put it on, as you won't waste the effect.
Then again, I am rather anal about minmaxing... If you don't, then I agree -- it's easier to get Sera to a decent level pre Skyhold than Varric. Without specialization the difference between Sera and Varric as all weapon damage. One could just switch out whichever is better.
Though then comes the question: Can you stand Sera?
But, yes. The first thing I did on my last archer was to go right into Emerald Forest the second I had the chance - a la: level 13. A few bears later and I had enough skin to pump myself to 50% crit, Sera to 50% crit, my tank to 20% crit and Solas allready had 30% ish. Not enough to keep spamming Long shot and full draw -- but enough to faceroll the game from there.
The schematics merchant in Val Royaux sells a Tier 2 Spiked Longbow schematic, which when crafted with Paragon Luster has (if I am not mistaken) 104 Damage, without enchantments. It costs just 1,300 gold. He also sells a pretty solid Bow Grip with 12x Leather Utility.
I remember my Bianca having like 70-ish damage pre-Skyhold, so there was no comparison. Maybe the Tier 2 Bianca schematic you got was random. Also I had no idea one could find any rune pre-Skyhold, let alone a Master level... You know some pretty interesting pre-Skyhold secrets 
The schematics merchant in Val Royaux sells a Tier 2 Spiked Longbow schematic, which when crafted with Paragon Luster has (if I am not mistaken) 104 Damage, without enchantments. It costs just 1,300 gold. He also sells a pretty solid Bow Grip with 12x Leather Utility.
I remember my Bianca having like 70-ish damage pre-Skyhold, so there was no comparison. Maybe the Tier 2 Bianca schematic you got was random. Also I had no idea one could find any rune pre-Skyhold, let alone a Master level... You know some pretty interesting pre-Skyhold secrets
Hm.. Last I tried to craft Tier 2 weapon the bow had 94 damage. To get it over a 100 I needed a rune.
And Bianca had a natural damage of 90 or so, with a master rune attached.
You get the Master Fire rune at the Shard puzzle if I am not mistaken. Together with the 30% fire belt. You can probably choose to get a frost, or spirit, one as well if you choose another door. You get enough shards to get through 1 element + have 3 extra shards.
@Matth85: I was talking more general, as in late in the game/gearing up for end game, which is when stacking critical chance is viable. early (T1) and possibly mid (T2) game schematics usually have around 4 leather in each slot, and it is only in the late (T3) game schematics that stacking critical chance is really an option. 1.75% chance of getting a critical is not all that much, even on a per one used basis.
In the end, I was mere pointing out the missing pieces of the argument. I did the research and the math, which is how I came upon the numbers I did.
Modifié par draken-heart, 19 décembre 2014 - 08:29 .
Hm.. Last I tried to craft Tier 2 weapon the bow had 94 damage. To get it over a 100 I needed a rune.
And Bianca had a natural damage of 90 or so, with a master rune attached.
You get the Master Fire rune at the Shard puzzle if I am not mistaken. Together with the 30% fire belt. You can probably choose to get a frost, or spirit, one as well if you choose another door. You get enough shards to get through 1 element + have 3 extra shards.
I remember not using the Bow from the Astrarium because my crafted one was slightly better. Anyway, getting a Bianca that good and that early in the game must be a random
As for the Shards door, I went the Frost way, since it gives you +1 ability point.
Lol my archer artificer is lvl 17 still using some tier 2 stuff now I know why I never went to hissing waste or the other place with the name I can't remember yet
I thought about it, and to me, Artificer is the most party-dependent specialization, which makes it kind of bad. I mean, in order for the spec to be any good, you have to gear your party a certain way. This is bad because no other spec needs the ENTIRE party to stack anything to be effective. I wouldn't really do anything with Varric until late game/endgame anyways, personally.
I thought about it, and to me, Artificer is the most party-dependent specialization, which makes it kind of bad. I mean, in order for the spec to be any good, you have to gear your party a certain way. This is bad because no other spec needs the ENTIRE party to stack anything to be effective. I wouldn't really do anything with Varric until late game/endgame anyways, personally.
No.
Opportunity Knocks is affected by your own criticals as well as those of your teammates. Which means that you can stack critical chance only on your own self.
Once you get up to 30-35% crit chance you start noticing the difference. Especially when spamming Leaping Shot at close range. If you have at least one other party member with high crit, you can also start spamming upgraded Elemental Mines (though I'd get the DW stamina passive for that). Mobs will be just a fading memory.
My next playthrough as an Artificer, I'm making a beeline for the Sandy Howler and that +50 stamina amulet. Upgraded Mines with extra stamina and high crit chance is quite possibly the best AoE in the game.
One more thing to note is that Opportunity Knocks requires only one other skill point as investment. Which makes Artificer one of the specializations that starts turning profit the fastest.
No.
Opportunity Knocks is affected by your own criticals as well as those of your teammates. Which means that you can stack critical chance only on your own self.
Once you get up to 30-35% crit chance you start noticing the difference. Especially when spamming Leaping Shot at close range. If you have at least one other party member with high crit, you can also start spamming upgraded Elemental Mines (though I'd get the DW stamina passive for that). Mobs will be just a fading memory.
My next playthrough as an Artificer, I'm making a beeline for the Sandy Howler and that +50 stamina amulet. Upgraded Mines with extra stamina and high crit chance is quite possibly the best AoE in the game.
One more thing to note is that Opportunity Knocks requires only one other skill point as investment. Which makes Artificer one of the specializations that starts turning profit the fastest.
Maybe not party-dependent, but stat dependent for sure. The only other specialization that "requires" a stat is Templar, and that is only if you plan to use the stun/dispell combo a lot.
Assassin and Tempest does not NEED high Crit, but it is a nice addon. None of the mage specialization really NEED a high crit to be effective. Only the Artificer needs it to be effective at anything.
If you all want to know what my views on the game, here is the "levels"
This way, I decide what to do where, such as hunting dragons and visiting the hissing wastes post halamshiral. These are based off of what I feel is "good" to complete that area in the end. I decided not to really worry about Varric until I go out dragon hunting.
Maybe not party-dependent, but stat dependent for sure. The only other specialization that "requires" a stat is Templar, and that is only if you plan to use the stun/dispell combo a lot.
Assassin and Tempest does not NEED high Crit, but it is a nice addon. None of the mage specialization really NEED a high crit to be effective. Only the Artificer needs it to be effective at anything.
Yes, and no. They all want about 50% crit-ish. Simpy because of the "On crit" passives a rogue get. Not to mention the amount of damage a crit does. It is simply the most optimal way of gearing. Of course, an artificer wants 70%+ to be optimal. Anywyas, at that point an artificer is more than welcome into a team; Even VArric can solo a High Dragon in 12 seconds on nightmare!
To beat a little on the rest of the things you said;
You don't NEED anything to manage. You can do the game, naked, on nightmare and have no problem. Heck, I went 1-15 with 2 level 3 daggers. At that point my sanity was being tested a tad too much, so I had to opt for better gear. So, yes. You are right; You do not need crit to be effective. You also do not need any stat stacking to be effective. You do, however, need it to be optimal. If the goal is to be effective, you might as well go all the way. It cost no more time or effort to get some crit rather than something else.
50% crit takes no effort at all to get on rogues. Mages can reach 30-50% easy as well, given plenty of staves get 25%+ crit (one unique get 25% crit mid-game). Warriors might struggle a bit, but that's okay; 20% or so is enough for 'dem warriors.
The only thing I do agree partly on are assassin. They do not need a lot of crit due to how they work. That said, they still want near 50%. Just so MoD gets a chance to crit, and you get enough stamina back to keep bouncing around in stealth.
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And Artificer gets noticeably better at 30% crit on him/herself, and gets a huge boost once 1, or 2, other team members reach the same.
As my Archer hit 13 (I just got to Skyhold. I literally just got there) I ran to the Forest area. I went in and took out 4 Bears, which were level 16. That got me enough Leather. I used it to craft myself a new set of armor and a bow grip. I ended up with exactly 50% crit. Further or I got the staff at the temple in Western Apporoach. The place where time is frozen. I got the 25% crit staff for Solas.
At this point I could almost spam Long Shot. At level 14. WIth tier 2 gear. Mid-game. Not end-game. Not optimized. My damage was as good as it could be at this point.
does the AI on varris use the traps properly? or should i just go ahead and disable them. If AI sucks at traps i will only go down the right side of artificer to get opportunity knocks and tricks of trade passive.
does the AI on varris use the traps properly? or should i just go ahead and disable them. If AI sucks at traps i will only go down the right side of artificer to get opportunity knocks and tricks of trade passive.
He uses them... well, weirdly. I recommend disabling them.
First off, he runs into melee and stays in melee. Which is bad. He also uses traps at weird times -- like throwing the it where no enemies are.
yea then i will stick with going only right side of artificer for him and disable his traps.
The big question of mine is "What is optimal?" To me that means different things in different situations:
This leads me to my big Varric Question. Why have him in the first place? IF an archer Cole can kill bosses faster, and Sera is perfect for dealing with mooks, Varric's only reason to exist in this game is to be a bonus character. It does not help that everything but the focus ability seems to scream melee rogue for me.
Because Cole or Sera isn't better than Varric -- Assassin is better than Tempest and Artificer. If you plan to consistently play Cole/VArric/Sera, you might as well be a rogue inquisitor. Outside of that, Varric is better due to the synergy between how the AI works and the CD reduction.
"optimal" is not different in different situation. OPtimal is not a prefference or an optinion. Optimal is efficiency. It's going all taylorism. Also, an artificer is better than a tempest dealing damage. Artificer is just a bit under an assassin at min/max level. I recommend you to try each specialization out. You obviously haven't.
Thanks all, this helped a bunch, Varric is decent again!
Side note, didn't know Knight Enchanter was so broken, soloing dragons is simultaneously fun and....annoying, if you know what I mean.
He uses them... well, weirdly. I recommend disabling them.
First off, he runs into melee and stays in melee. Which is bad. He also uses traps at weird times -- like throwing the it where no enemies are.
Running into melee is not necessarily a bad thing on an Archer Artificer. You just have to set Leaping Shot and Elemental Mines to preferred. Yes, he will miss occasionally, but generally he will replenish his cooldowns/stamina and continue spamming devastation. In fact, I might try to make him go more into close range; that's certainly how I got the most out of my Archer Artificer Quizzie.
The important thing is to keep Bianca's damage and critical chance up to date.
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