Curse

nostra · May 24, 2005, 08:29 AM // 08:29

Hi,

I’m a lvl 20 mesmer/elem. and I used to have about 2 water elem. spells in my skill bar, together with my domination and inspiration spells. I wanted to use water spells to do Area of Effect damage (with snare effect), but ended up using more and more mesmer spells and less and less water spells. The reason for this choice is that: (1) these spells cost a lot of energy, (2) their damage is not so great due to armor damage reduction (as opposed to mesmer damage that is not reduced by armor), (3) the snare effect is short and not super useful I feel, (4) the PBAoE is cool but it is dangerous to have to go melee with a frail caster...

Consequently, I recently got rid of the water spells and respecialized to use illusion spells instead. Currently, I am using (1) fast casting, (2) domination (backfire, empathy, power spike) , (3) illusion (conjuration of fantasm) and (4) inspiration (energy siphon, ethereal feast). I feel I can do whatever I want regarding cursing and dealing damage at the present time (well, of course, having more damaging spells could be nice, but hey! you only get 8 slots, so I don’t have many free slots…). I think I am strong enough in offense and I should maybe rather improve my survivability, so that the monk don’t have to spend all their time taking care of me. In fact, at the present time, I feel the mesmer spells are so versatile and powerful that I have not chosen which ones I will use in the end but feel much more attracted by them rather than by the elem. spells.

I am now at the point where I can change my secondary profession and wonder if I should do so.

My question to you is: what would you recommend as a secondary profession:

1) EITHER I stick with my four mesmer spec and would take only a secondary profession for the benefit it would give me without having to invest points in any of its attributes (some skills are not linked to any attribute and can thus be used efficiently even without investing attribute points): be it that I get a better rez than the rez signet (monk), or a pet (ranger), or good defensive stance (warrior), or good leech (necro), or whatever I can get without lowering my mesmer efficiency,

2) OR you can advise me to remove some points from my mesmer attributes (illusion for example, I use only 1 illusion skill at the present time), in order to invest in a new attribute from my new secondary profession if there is such a secondary profession attributes that would have really good skills to serve my purpose.

If you have any thoughts on this, please share them (with explanation as to why you advise soemthing). I would be very grateful.

nostra

Anariel · May 24, 2005, 08:34 AM // 08:34

Get monk subclass and take advantage of your fast cast attribute to cast super fast rezzes.

Get necro subclass and combine mesmer and necro hexes for a devastating disabler. Ouchies.

Get warrior subclass and illusionary weapon / savage slash combo for in your face caster slaying. Doesn't sound like your style though.

Or stick with water and get water trident. The spell description speaks for itself, if you're anti-melee.

Raiddinn Beatdropper · May 26, 2005, 05:10 PM // 17:10

I would suggest looking at what you are weakest against, and using your secondary class to counter that.

It all comes down to what you want I guess, which would you rather be, very potent and very vulnerable, or potent and a lot less vulnerable?

Tsunamii Starshine

toastgodsupreme · May 26, 2005, 05:48 PM // 17:48

I have to say I'm partial to necro. Raise a few minions and let them take the heat. I've never run into a team who didn't LOVE me after doing a mission with me.

OR

You could go monk. Different ways you can go with this:
1. Go protection. Get life bond (why don't I see more monks with this? it should be cast on all melee if possible, I LOVE running with this in missions in PUGs) or life barrier. This frees up the party's healer to instead toss you some love without hurting other members. This is also good if you run around with henchies. Keep this up on stefan, thom, and alissa (she takes agro like it's her job).
2. Go healing. Healing Breeze is nice. Then so is heal area. I figure you'll be in the back of the fights right?

OR

Go warrior. I know, weird, right? Keep reading...
Tactics + shield =
Disciplined Stance - Stance
For 5-10 seconds, you gain +24 armor and have a 75% chance to block attacks. Disciplined Stance ends if you use an adrenal skill.

AND

Shield Stance - Stance
For 8-18 seconds, while wielding a shield, you have a 75% chance to block incoming attacks, but you move 33% slower.

Assuming you reach the stated max time for each, that means you run one, then run the other right afterwards, you only have about 30 seconds until you can run them again. But I hope within that 28 second window, whatever was beating on you has now run off and either died or found a new target. Keep in mind that one gives you an AL bonus, so even LESS damage there, and the fact that you'll be hauling a shield is even more of a defense bonus.

So there are a few ideas. Good luck!

Flatliner · May 26, 2005, 06:17 PM // 18:17

Quote:

Originally Posted by toastgodsupreme

You could go monk. Different ways you can go with this:
1. Go protection. Get life bond (why don't I see more monks with this? it should be cast on all melee if possible, I LOVE running with this in missions in PUGs) or life barrier. This frees up the party's healer to instead toss you some love without hurting other members. This is also good if you run around with henchies. Keep this up on stefan, thom, and alissa (she takes agro like it's her job).

There are a few reasons you don't see monks with this.

1) The last person to be siphoning damage should be the monk. The job of warriors and other professions is to keep your monk alive. If he is using Life Bond, that means he's taking damage from whatever is hitting him, as well as what is hitting the warrior.

2) -1 Energy Regen hurts the monk a lot. Monks run out of mana countless times during a battle and count on their 4 regen to pull them through and keep the party alive.

In PvP, they really need their mana, thats the main reason they don't use it.

toastgodsupreme · May 26, 2005, 06:53 PM // 18:53

Quote:

Originally Posted by Flatliner

There are a few reasons you don't see monks with this.

1) The last person to be siphoning damage should be the monk. The job of warriors and other professions is to keep your monk alive. If he is using Life Bond, that means he's taking damage from whatever is hitting him, as well as what is hitting the warrior.

2) -1 Energy Regen hurts the monk a lot. Monks run out of mana countless times during a battle and count on their 4 regen to pull them through and keep the party alive.

In PvP, they really need their mana, thats the main reason they don't use it.

True, I do have it easy with 7+1 in soul reaping. And so far, life bond seems to knock me for -0 a LOT. And I'm usually in the back of the pack (sorry, I'm a necro/monk btw) raising the dead. So if something DOES get on me, I throw the skill up that directs 75% physical damage to my nearest minion.

I guess without soul reaping, a monk would be kind of hurting after having it up.

I'm still waiting for that special day when I run into someone else who's running it and we can cast it on each other. *drool* lol