Curse

Sith Lord Pancake · May 31, 2009, 03:16 AM // 03:16

Hi,
First off I'll say I'm new to GW's but a 10 year vet of MMO's. I have never played an mmo with such a feel to it, a breath of fresh air. However at about lvl 12 I thought maybe I chose the wrong 2nd prof with ele, they didn't have too much that went together except the Glypth of Lesser Energy and the Aura of Restoration with I don't even use anymore, and besides, you can't put attrib points in Energy Storage anyways so it almost seemed like a messed up my char a little. But then I tried to incorporate some fire with death and blood, didn't work that well, so I moved on to Blood/Curse/Fire. That build started to rebuild my faith in the N/e. However, soon I realized that the only 2 blood magic spells I was really using were Life Siphon and Vampiric Touch. Both spells I liked, but I thought if I could replace them with spells from the fire and curses magic spells I would have more attribute points to spend and thus yeild higher damage output and HP stealing.
So i trashed the Blood Magic skills, and found some spells from fire and curses. From curses I grabbed Suffering to replace life siphon, it didn't give me re-gen but it gives 2 de-gen to the target and all adjacent to him. I also snatched from fire, Meteor Shower to replace the Firestorm I had and Fireball because I love these spells that hurt multiple foes at once. I had already had phoenix from fire and mark of pain from curses so here was my thinking, I'll list my spells before explaining:

1 (F) Meteor Shower
2 (F) Phoenix
3 (F) Fireball
4 (C) Suffering
5 (C) Mark of Pain
6 (C) Insidious Parasite
7 (ES) Glyph of Lesser Energy
8 ((---Signet of Capure---)))

Now when I go into combat I cast Mark of Pain while calling out that target so any henchies or heroes focuse on that one mob, this way each hit to that foe will also damage any adjacent foes, this doesn't always work depending on how spread apart they are. Next I wil tab to a creature with full health and pop Insidious Parasite on then then hit 't' to move back to the main target. So now im doing almost 80 damage to one other mob because when he attacks i steal about 40 HP from him. Depending on mana I'll pop my gylph now which used to act as almost as a mircle buff because all my spells had low energy cost where spells such as Meteror shower takes 25 energy, but it is definatly more tolarable when It only costs 15. Since the foe and all adjacent will be knocked down a few times every few seconds I run up to them, if there are a bunch I may recastMark of Pain but most the time i just cast Pheonix, the best spell for my buck, Since it deals damage to foes adjacent to you then more to your target and foes adj to him, I just stand in the middle of them all and cast it. It's amazing, especially if Mark of Pain is working well. Fireball is cheap, does good damage and again hits adjacent foes.

So I suppose I made this build with taking down groups in mind. Well I must say I love this build and I crushing many fights. However since I am new to this game Im sure there are about probably about 100 holes in my strategy, so anyone willing to help me develop a mainly PvE but would love to PvP N/E I would appreciate all your advice.

Farewell,
Syn Lsy 18 N/e

AtomicMew · May 31, 2009, 03:42 AM // 03:42

Basically, this build is not very good. (I'm not saying this to be mean.)

Take a look at pvxwiki.com for a few stronger build templates. Test them out, see what works for you.

samerkablamer · May 31, 2009, 04:24 AM // 04:24

yeah, try pvx.wikia.com

however, you seem to know how to play these kind of games, so except for the farming builds, it does not always work best to just copy/paste builds from there which is what alot of people do. This is because when beginners go there they copy/paste the builds having no idea why it works, and a good build on a bad person isnt good, so before tryin out builds and stuff make sure you know why it is more effective than something else and also make sure that you understand how it works.

the build that you are using atm is actually probably fine for lower areas of the game, but later you will start to realize that that isnt how necros are really supposed to be played.

Skyy High · May 31, 2009, 04:57 AM // 04:57

Your mistake is that you saw that you could have two professions, and you're trying to make your character an equal mix of both. This really isn't the way most good builds work. Secondaries are generally used either a) a choice skill or two that helps your build immensely (like a condition removal on a warrior, or glyph of lesser energy on a n/e), or b) a build that takes advantage of one profession's primary attribute with another profession's skills. Curses and death are generally good enough that you really don't need to spec into fire, or any other elemental attribute. Blood isn't too hot really, unless you're running pure melee support (order of pain, etc).

Xenomortis · May 31, 2009, 09:44 AM // 09:44

That is a horrible wall of text in the OP right there. As such, I'm not sure what you're saying, so I'm just going to critique the build and hopefully that's what you want.

At the start of the game, Fire Magic may seem powerful. However, as you progress, you will notice it becomes far weaker. Your best bet is to scrap that investment and focus on just two attributes - Soul Reaping and Curses (but other necromancer lines will work).

As the game gets harder, the value of the Curses line increases. I suggest this is where you focus.

[Suffering] is a very weak choice for PvE - degeneration is fairly weak and all it does is serve as an expensive AoE cover hex.
[Mark of Pain] is immensly powerful if utilised properly. I also suggest [Barbs].
I assume you only have Prophecies, so I recommend [Enfeebling Blood] and perhaps (when you can get it) [Spiteful Spirit] - despite myself, it isn't that bad a choice for a newer player.

You could also try the Minion Master role (utilising Death Magic), it makes your time with henchmen quite easy as you provide a lot of squishy targets for the enemy and deal respectible damage at the start of the game.

Just remember, your secondary profession is largely for small utility skills. It is infrequent that a heavy spec into a secondary profession's attributes will be beneficial.

Osi Ri S · Jun 01, 2009, 08:42 AM // 08:42

Honestly, It seems as if the OP is taking the normal route for anyone that is new to this game. Early in the game it can be valuable to mix both your primary and secondary professions as you are currently doing.

However, as you progress and get better you will hopefully start to lean towards your primary class' skills. It looks as if youre already making that progression, if youre doing as you stated and starting to use the curses line.

My advice to you would be to just play the game as you are. It seems as if youre learning fast and will no doubt progress and start using better skills/bars. You also said that you liked doing dmg to multiple foes at once, so Necro was a good choice with options like the MoP/AP nuker and the standard Spiteful Spirit bar which only get better as the game gets harder. Both of these bars rely on the curses line so pay attention to that attribute line.

Also, dont think that you made a mistake picking Ele as a secondary class, later in the game you will be able to change your secondary profession at will so its not a big deal.

Its late and im not thinking clearly so I will have to add more when ive had some sleep -.-

faraaz · Jun 01, 2009, 08:53 AM // 08:53

Quote:

Originally Posted by Sith Lord Pancake

*snip*

The reason Necromancers are considered very powerful is that they have the ability to deal a LOT of armor ignoring damage through the Curses line such as with Spiteful Spirit, Mark of Pain, Barbs (another great spell you wanna look into) etc. The reason people say its not a good idea to use fire magic on your Necromancer is that Fire Magic damage is NOT armor ignoring, so basically you are giving up your Necromancer's main strength, which could lead to you being weaker than you can be.

Also, another point is Soul Reaping is a very important attribute and you should have as many points in it as possible, to fuel your Curses spells which are frankly, some of the best in the game, no competition. Diluting your attribute ranks reduces your efficiency. Again, not trying to be mean or critical, just giving you a bit of (hopefully) insight into the mechanics of the Necromancer.

trankle · Jun 01, 2009, 04:08 PM // 16:08

To the OP:

You're doing fine. Two things other people have said, that I'd like to reiterate:

1. You don't need to think of your character as a N/E, but simply as an N. A bit later in the campaign, you will have the opportunity to change your secondary profession, and unlock all the other secondaries. From that moment on, you will be able to switch secondaries instantly, and with no drawback (as long as you're in town). Assuming you're enjoying the game and purchase the other campaigns, your Necro will be playing them with a full choice of secondaries. It's a very nice feature of the game. It's also the reason why you don't need to feel like your initial choice was limiting in any way.

2. There are two general damage types in the game: armor-ignoring and armor-respecting. Armor ignoring damage (like your Curses spells) always does its stated damage, unless that is reduced via a skill. Armor-respecting damage (like your Fire spells) takes into account both armor rating, and the difference in level between the attacker and defender, among other things.

At lower levels in the game, especially against foes of a lower level than you, your Fire spells may actually be outperforming your Curses spells. If this is the case, by all means, use the most effective tools you have.

Pay attention as you progress, though, that as your enemies get higher in level, your Fire spells aren't producing the same numbers as before. When the Curses spells are outperforming the Fire spells (and they will), be open to changing your focus.