6 réponses à ce sujet

[!nick]

I'm trying to build a solo mage that combines high damage output and high survivability. KE came to mind, however I figured that with its impact detonator and shock+weakness combo the rift mage could dish out a lot more pain. Hence, the melee rift mage. 

 

1. Stonefist + Shatterstone

2. Chain lightning/Energy barrage + ?

3. Winter's grasp + Winter's Ruin

4. Fade step + ?

5. Blizzard + Ice Storm

6. Pull of the Abyss + Shaken Veil

7. Fire Mine + Flaming Array

8. Barrier/Static Cage/Mark of the Rift

 

For the staff, it wouldn't be a melee build without blade of tidarion would it?

With the Gathering storm passive, you reduce cooldown and regain mana for every swing of the sword. This is useful since this build doesn't have cooldown free immolate to spam for clean burn. Also, it's a way of dealing aoe damage when everything else is on cooldown or when i'm out of mana. 

 

Fade touched silverite+fade touched obsidian means I'm gaining a large amount of guard with each hit. It simulates fade shield somewhat. Also, I'll equip a superb belt of health to maximize guard.

 

Blizzard is kinda meh cause it doesn't freeze enemies like it should. But still a necessary evil because I need it for ice armor/winter's ruin/shatter combos. Rift mage can have blizzard on permanently, thus reducing all damage by 50% via ice armor. That coupled with the guard on hit + defensively focused heavy armor means I should be able to withstand a lot of punishment. Also enemies would be almost always weakened, further reducing their damage by 30%.

 

Input on the following points would be appreciated-

1. Schematics for helmet/heavy armor and upgrades? Which effects should I focus on, melee defense or ranged defense or elemental resist? Or would it be better to go light armor to max willpower since it boosts both attack and magic defense?

2. Accessories. I'm thinking of a superb belt of health since guard is based off health. Is Andraste's sacrifice useful when you're mostly going solo?

3. To chaotic focus or not, that is the question.

4. Upgrades for fade step and energy barrage. I need electric damage for aoe sleep with weaken so would chain lightning be better? Also, advise on best choice for slot 8.

5. Since this build can only stack attack on staff and potentially helmet, how would the damage output be compared to a knight enchanter who focuses on crit/attack/willpower? Would the combos make up in damage?

6. Would you recommend going with Encore instead of BoT? It would take away the melee aspect of the build, but I'd be okay with that if it provides more soloing prowess.

7. Would you suggest replacing blizzard with ice array or something else?

 

Thanks.

[PapaCharlie9]

So you are planning on exploiting the bug that causes the Weakeness status to turn into Sleeping status if you use Storm abilities on weakened enemies? Since RM is all about Weakness, you either have to avoid Storm abilities, like Chain Lightning and Static Cage, or exploit the Sleeping bug, like with this build: http://forum.bioware...ift-mage-build/

I just wrote a post in another thread with my Rift Mage/Winter build, which would be great for melee/close quarters. You can check it out here for ideas:

http://forum.bioware...od-mage-builds/

Don't worry too much about damage output. Once you have the entire RM skill tree filled in, except for the useless Focus ability, and cooldown buffs like Flashpoint, you can cast Stonefist about once every 4 seconds. That is huge damage output in terms of DPS, for a mage.

You want to build your spec around RM abilities and crit chance, supplementing with your favorite elemental abilities. Look for actives and passive the synergize with weakness and crowd control, or crits and cooldowns.

For example, a favorite RM trick is to cast Fire Mine/Searing Glyph into the middle of a mob. Then follow up with Pull of The Abyss right on top of the Fire Mine. PotA pulls all the mooks onto the mine and Searing Glyph sends them all into the sky. Even if they survive, they are weakened. Great fun!

I would adjust your list of actives as follows:

1. Stonefist + Shatterstone
2. Energy barrage Veilstrike + Punching Down
3. Winter's grasp + Winter's Ruin
4. Fade step + Frost Step (you want chilled enemies to keep Ice Armor up)
5. Blizzard + Ice Storm Ice Mine + Chilling Array (+ Ice Armor, and you will be as close to a tank as a mage can come)
6. Pull of the Abyss + Shaken Veil
7. Fire Mine + Flaming Array  Searing Glyph
8. Barrier/Static Cage/Mark of the Rift (see below)
 

I find Veilstrike to be essential and a lot of fun. I'd gladly give up EB or any other attack ability, even PotA, to make room for Veilstrike. If you get mobbed by flankers, Veilstrike saves the day. If an archer is two-shotting you, Veilstrike buys you some time. I open every new combat with Veilstrike and go from there.

 

Ice Armor is incredibly good as a defensive passive. And it has a bug that makes it stay active even when there are no chilled enemies around. I would say it is essential for a solo RM, until you have the Ring of Doubt, anyway.
 
Barrier isn't really needed if you have Ice Armor, for self defense anyway. You can use it for either charging up Searing Glyph by way of Chaotic Focus, or, to support the rest of the party, but you are running solo, so forget that.

If you do go for the Sleeping bug, you'll want Storm passives that help with close quarters, like Static Charge. Gathering Storm would help with cooldowns too. And of course you'll need to swap in some Storm actives that cause Shocked status. But with a Winter build, you don't need it. You can go straight Weakness and rely on Shatter from Winter abilities for combos.

[PapaCharlie9]

Input on the following points would be appreciated-
1. Schematics for helmet/heavy armor and upgrades? Which effects should I focus on, melee defense or ranged defense or elemental resist? Or would it be better to go light armor to max willpower since it boosts both attack and magic defense?

It's always a good idea to max willpower over any other stat for a mage, with the possible exception of Dex. Just use the best light armor you can find and rely on Barrier and then Ice Armor for the rest.

If you go cross-class, the Superior Prowler Armor is usually the best in the main game, since it maxes out Criticals. Crits supercharge your Stonefist spamming damage. It's hard to get, though, requiring much real-time patience.
 
 

2. Accessories. I'm thinking of a superb belt of health since guard is based off health. Is Andraste's sacrifice useful when you're mostly going solo?

The taunt effect isn't so great for a mage.

In general, accessories are nice-to-haves for a fully spec'd RM. You can get by with whatever is at hand. I only really needed belts for dragon battles, for example. For common rings, I go for Attack%, Crit Chance, Crit Damage, in that order. For common amulets, cooldown never hurts, nor does willpower.

Some of the new Trespasser/P10 items are pretty OP. I mentioned Ring of Doubt already. Amulet of Critical Chain, Amulet of Renewal, Amulet of the Mage or Amulet of the Rogue, Ring of Slicing, Belt of the Elements. The various Belt of X Pact are great if you are specializing in an element. So if you go Winter, the Belt of Winter Pact would be great.

Some of the above can be purchased and I think they are all available to mages, though you'll need to check.

 

3. To chaotic focus or not, that is the question.

Already discussed in previous post. If you have Barrier as an active AND you have Searing Glyph, it's worth it, otherwise probably not.

 

4. Upgrades for fade step and energy barrage. I need electric damage for aoe sleep with weaken so would chain lightning be better? Also, advise on best choice for slot 8.

Already discussed.

 

5. Since this build can only stack attack on staff and potentially helmet, how would the damage output be compared to a knight enchanter who focuses on crit/attack/willpower? Would the combos make up in damage?

In a word, yes. RM should focus on crit/attack/willpower too. Every mage should.

 

6. Would you recommend going with Encore instead of BoT? It would take away the melee aspect of the build, but I'd be okay with that if it provides more soloing prowess.

BoT makes more sense for a solo close combat RM, yes? To me, Encore makes more sense in the party situation. Any staff in the 70-80 + spirit rune damage range will be fine, though. Stonefist + Searing Glyph is really all you need, with Chilling Array + Ice Armor for close quarters defense.

You may find that BoT isn't the best option once you get up to level 16-17 in experience. At that level, you should be able to start spamming Stonefist and ultimately, that's going to have better damage output than auto attacks from any staff. You won't even have time for auto-attacks once you max out your cooldown buffs and crits. It got to the point where I could do a cycle of Stonefist, Winter's Ruin and Immolate and Stonefist would be back up again for a repeat.

 

7. Would you suggest replacing blizzard with ice array or something else?

Yes, already did.

[!nick]

It's always a good idea to max willpower over any other stat for a mage, with the possible exception of Dex. Just use the best light armor you can find and rely on Barrier and then Ice Armor for the rest.

If you go cross-class, the Superior Prowler Armor is usually the best in the main game, since it maxes out Criticals. Crits supercharge your Stonefist spamming damage. It's hard to get, though, requiring much real-time patience.
 
 


The taunt effect isn't so great for a mage.

In general, accessories are nice-to-haves for a fully spec'd RM. You can get by with whatever is at hand. I only really needed belts for dragon battles, for example. For common rings, I go for Attack%, Crit Chance, Crit Damage, in that order. For common amulets, cooldown never hurts, nor does willpower.

Some of the new Trespasser/P10 items are pretty OP. I mentioned Ring of Doubt already. Amulet of Critical Chain, Amulet of Renewal, Amulet of the Mage or Amulet of the Rogue, Ring of Slicing, Belt of the Elements. The various Belt of X Pact are great if you are specializing in an element. So if you go Winter, the Belt of Winter Pact would be great.

Some of the above can be purchased and I think they are all available to mages, though you'll need to check.

 

Already discussed in previous post. If you have Barrier as an active AND you have Searing Glyph, it's worth it, otherwise probably not.

 

Already discussed.

 

In a word, yes. RM should focus on crit/attack/willpower too. Every mage should.

 

BoT makes more sense for a solo close combat RM, yes? To me, Encore makes more sense in the party situation. Any staff in the 70-80 + spirit rune damage range will be fine, though. Stonefist + Searing Glyph is really all you need, with Chilling Array + Ice Armor for close quarters defense.

You may find that BoT isn't the best option once you get up to level 16-17 in experience. At that level, you should be able to start spamming Stonefist and ultimately, that's going to have better damage output than auto attacks from any staff. You won't even have time for auto-attacks once you max out your cooldown buffs and crits. It got to the point where I could do a cycle of Stonefist, Winter's Ruin and Immolate and Stonefist would be back up again for a repeat.

 

Yes, already did.

Thank you for the pointers. Do you feel that the defensive emphasis isn't necessary on a solo build? You think I'd be able to get by with just guard+ice armor? Cause static cage is fun.

Why searing glyph over flaming array? 

About andraste's sacrifice, I figured that I'd be drawing all the aggro anyway since I'd be playing solo. Not worth it? 

[PapaCharlie9]

Thank you for the pointers. Do you feel that the defensive emphasis isn't necessary on a solo build? You think I'd be able to get by with just guard+ice armor? Cause static cage is fun.

Why searing glyph over flaming array? 

About andraste's sacrifice, I figured that I'd be drawing all the aggro anyway since I'd be playing solo. Not worth it? 

 

Some amount of defense is needed, particularly before Level 16. I'd say you can get by with any 2 of guard, barrier and ice armor. You don't need all three, and one probably isn't enough. Barrier is your only defense against magic attacks, so keep that in mind.

 

You can take Static Cage, but I don't see what that has to do with defense. That's more about exploiting the Weakness/Sleep bug. For other mages it's the go-to ability for CC, but RM doesn't need any help with CC.

 

Why Searing Glyph over Flaming Array? One, because 200% DoT is nothing to sneeze at, and that's before considering Pyromancer and other DoT buffs. Two, synergy with PotA and the ability to use it as a ranged attack in general. Three, because you have Chilling Array for defense and it's more effective due to Ice Armor. And four, because launching mooks into the air is fun!

 

I don't think Andraste' Sacrifice is a must-have, but I don't think it is all that bad either. If you have your heart set on it, go for it, it is certainly easier to acquire than most of the others. You have a point about aggro, so that potential downside might be moot. Personally, I'd rather have an amulet that buffs crit or more than 10% cooldown, but if you find yourself mana limited, sure, Andraste's Sacrifice is good.

 

IMPORTANT: Are you running Nightmare with the Walk Softly Trial enabled? If so, you must take Dispel as an active. You'll have to figure out what you want to give up for it, maybe Fade Step. You'll get creamed by promoted enemies with regen barrier otherwise.

[!nick]

You can take Static Cage, but I don't see what that has to do with defense. That's more about exploiting the Weakness/Sleep bug. For other mages it's the go-to ability for CC, but RM doesn't need any help with CC.

 

It's actually for using with energy barrage for high single target damage for boss fights. Otherwise high hp enemies like dragons would take way too long to kill. 

 

Why Searing Glyph over Flaming Array? One, because 200% DoT is nothing to sneeze at, and that's before considering Pyromancer and other DoT buffs. Two, synergy with PotA and the ability to use it as a ranged attack in general. 

That's a good point. Also, flaming array occasionally does 1 damage for me :\

 

IMPORTANT: Are you running Nightmare with the Walk Softly Trial enabled? If so, you must take Dispel as an active. You'll have to figure out what you want to give up for it, maybe Fade Step. You'll get creamed by promoted enemies with regen barrier otherwise.

I am! Damn. The upgrade toggles for that ability are bugged, I was hoping to avoid taking it.

Anyway, thanks for all the help. You're awesome.

[stop_him]

So you are planning on exploiting the bug that causes the Weakeness status to turn into Sleeping status if you use Storm abilities on weakened enemies? Since RM is all about Weakness, you either have to avoid Storm abilities, like Chain Lightning and Static Cage, or exploit the Sleeping bug, like with this build: http://forum.bioware...ift-mage-build/

I just wrote a post in another thread with my Rift Mage/Winter build, which would be great for melee/close quarters. You can check it out here for ideas:

http://forum.bioware...od-mage-builds/

Don't worry too much about damage output. Once you have the entire RM skill tree filled in, except for the useless Focus ability, and cooldown buffs like Flashpoint, you can cast Stonefist about once every 4 seconds. That is huge damage output in terms of DPS, for a mage.

You want to build your spec around RM abilities and crit chance, supplementing with your favorite elemental abilities. Look for actives and passive the synergize with weakness and crowd control, or crits and cooldowns.

For example, a favorite RM trick is to cast Fire Mine/Searing Glyph into the middle of a mob. Then follow up with Pull of The Abyss right on top of the Fire Mine. PotA pulls all the mooks onto the mine and Searing Glyph sends them all into the sky. Even if they survive, they are weakened. Great fun!

I would adjust your list of actives as follows:

1. Stonefist + Shatterstone
2. Energy barrage Veilstrike + Punching Down
3. Winter's grasp + Winter's Ruin
4. Fade step + Frost Step (you want chilled enemies to keep Ice Armor up)
5. Blizzard + Ice Storm Ice Mine + Chilling Array (+ Ice Armor, and you will be as close to a tank as a mage can come)
6. Pull of the Abyss + Shaken Veil
7. Fire Mine + Flaming Array  Searing Glyph
8. Barrier/Static Cage/Mark of the Rift (see below)
 

I find Veilstrike to be essential and a lot of fun. I'd gladly give up EB or any other attack ability, even PotA, to make room for Veilstrike. If you get mobbed by flankers, Veilstrike saves the day. If an archer is two-shotting you, Veilstrike buys you some time. I open every new combat with Veilstrike and go from there.

 

Ice Armor is incredibly good as a defensive passive. And it has a bug that makes it stay active even when there are no chilled enemies around. I would say it is essential for a solo RM, until you have the Ring of Doubt, anyway.
 
Barrier isn't really needed if you have Ice Armor, for self defense anyway. You can use it for either charging up Searing Glyph by way of Chaotic Focus, or, to support the rest of the party, but you are running solo, so forget that.

If you do go for the Sleeping bug, you'll want Storm passives that help with close quarters, like Static Charge. Gathering Storm would help with cooldowns too. And of course you'll need to swap in some Storm actives that cause Shocked status. But with a Winter build, you don't need it. You can go straight Weakness and rely on Shatter from Winter abilities for combos.

 

Thanks for your input on this build.   I made a melee RM the other day, and I'm enjoying playing a different kind of RM. I wish there was some other kind of build for a Necromancer now aside from pyromancer types.