by Seignar Fri Apr 12, 2013 11:29 pmWhy is this called the "Casul Mage's Guide to Sorceries"?
Because, my dear reader, I am no "hardcore" wizard. I have experience with the ways of the Dragon Arts, but I am not a dedicated learner like Logan. I don't know how to effectively use White Dragon's Breath, I won't ever bother learning how to aim it. I do, however, know the basics of how to "lightly" use magic without having to go in depth with it.
What will you be talking about?
Magic."You don't say!?", yeah sure, whatever...you asked. To be more detailed, I will be talking about basic INT breakpoints. You don't need 50 INT to call yourself a Wizard, a die-hard Wizard maybe. I will write about how to get the most out of your magic without having to spent too many points.
What am I to expect?
You're to expect a very lazy guide about me lightly touching what points would be the wisest to reach in regards to your INT in order for you not lose points. You're not to expect some guides about how to use the Dragon Arts or what builds are good or bad. You're to hear me give light information on INT breakpoints and magic so you know exactly what you want for your build.
Why did you make this?
Because I was bored and have too much free time! Stop questioning me!
So let's get started?
Let's talk about Breakpoints (The only topic present). The world of the Dragon Arts is very diverse, ranging from offensive to support magic. It is important to know what your INT stat should be at so you don't get any wasted points. If you plan going full mage then your stat should be 50 INT, otherwise, take a look at these:
10
14
15
18
_+_+_+_+_+
Past this point there are no more breakpoints. There is no reason to stop at 44 or 50 unless you're trying to be a Logan and maximize your damage, which is not the domain of this thread. In reality, I would only recommend up to breakpoint 18 if you plan on being melee oriented and to 36 if you plan to mix range with melee.
That concludes the very Casul Mage's guide to Sorcery
.
Because, my dear reader, I am no "hardcore" wizard. I have experience with the ways of the Dragon Arts, but I am not a dedicated learner like Logan. I don't know how to effectively use White Dragon's Breath, I won't ever bother learning how to aim it. I do, however, know the basics of how to "lightly" use magic without having to go in depth with it.
What will you be talking about?
Magic."You don't say!?", yeah sure, whatever...you asked. To be more detailed, I will be talking about basic INT breakpoints. You don't need 50 INT to call yourself a Wizard, a die-hard Wizard maybe. I will write about how to get the most out of your magic without having to spent too many points.
What am I to expect?
You're to expect a very lazy guide about me lightly touching what points would be the wisest to reach in regards to your INT in order for you not lose points. You're not to expect some guides about how to use the Dragon Arts or what builds are good or bad. You're to hear me give light information on INT breakpoints and magic so you know exactly what you want for your build.
Why did you make this?
Because I was bored and have too much free time! Stop questioning me!
So let's get started?
Let's talk about Breakpoints (The only topic present). The world of the Dragon Arts is very diverse, ranging from offensive to support magic. It is important to know what your INT stat should be at so you don't get any wasted points. If you plan going full mage then your stat should be 50 INT, otherwise, take a look at these:
10
- Spoiler:
- 10 is the most basic requirement for Sorceries to even be used, but even at this point it has its uses. At 10 you can use Magic Shield and Magic Weapon. I realize that these moves are not talked about much, but they are worth a mention:
Magic Shield is an elementary magic rarely used by Magic Swordsman builds. It increases the magic resistance of the weapon being used to block by 30% (but doesn't bring it higher than 90%) and halves stamina consumption on block by 50% if you're using a shield. Now, it only last for 15 seconds and takes about 2 seconds for you to apply it.
So, what is viable about this thing that warrants a use? Well, it warrants a use at 10 INT, and if you don't mind putting on the Lingering Dragon Crest Ring to extend the duration. The 30% resistance bonus comes in quite handy for certain shields. Namely: Black Knight Shield (55%), Silver Knight Shield (70%), Balder Shield (50%) and Heater Shield (60%). All of these are high quality shields that are already good for blocking as-is, but lack in the magic guarding department.
This is especially useful against Pure Mages that would usually penetrate your shields like a sheet of paper. Another mindful application is with the Crest Shield, to create an amazing tool against Magic.
Magic Weapon is the first of the 3 Sorcery buffs in the game. Like Magic Shield, it is rarely used. This is yet another really light magic that would only be used by people who just happened to get the minimum requirement and found an Oolacile Catalyst. It applies 144 Magic to any enhanceable weapon. It ain't as impressive as you like, with Gold Pine Resin being 6 points stronger and having less defenses to deal with, but it is free!
14
- Spoiler:
- At 14, you have various useful Sorceries to work with. They aren't directly useful, but if you know the tricks it can save you a lot of trouble:
Great Soul Arrow is quite handy and worth a mention over Soul Arrow. It has tracking properties and plentiful casts, allowing any slightly invested warrior to play a quick range game, although it is admittedly weak in comparison to other alternatives. The use of this spell is really only justified if you loaded out the standard Casual Set (Crown of Dusk, Oolacile Catalysts, Bellowing Dragon Crest), even then you'll only be seeing kind of poultry damage, but it does have the benefit of tracking (Forces a roll, unlike X-bows and bows), quick fire and being overall safe.
There is only 1 reason to use Hidden Body: It protects against Soulmasses and Pursuers. While you're under the effects of Hidden Body, Soulmasses and Pursuers will never attack you, rendering them useless for a time. It is also possible to somewhat harmlessly disable them afterwards by touching the unlaunched spheres, causing them to disappear at a cost of about 10 HP the piece, although be mindful of the opponent.
Chameleon. The most powerful attack is the one you never see coming! In the case of low level mages, the least dangerous opponent is the one that is losing options. Chameleon does have direct PVP applications. It disables lock-on for your opponent, it hides all your auras and it hides your weapon switches. If you're a master at quick swapping, you can surprise your opponent each time as they have no way of knowing if you switched weapons or not. In addition, you momentarily handicap opponents by disabling their lock-on.
15
- Spoiler:
- 1 extra point and in come in 2 more options. I already talked about this magic in general, but i should point it out:
Strong Magic Shield is like immortality. It has the same weaknesses as Magic Shield, but now it prevents all forms of Chip Damage and gives such a huge decrease in Stamina Reduction that 68 stability shields are practically upgraded to 100 stability (meaning there is no stamina drain). Extremely useful if you are about to face glass cannons, as it renders most of their offenses ineffective.
Great Magic Weapon is a step up from Magic Weapon. It adds 198 Magic with the Oolacile Catalysts. It is better than Gold Pine Resin and it deals better Chip Damage in general. It is also at small investment and is a must for people with less than 25 INT.
- Spoiler:
There is only 1 reason why 16 is a breakpoint:
A deadly magic that punishes aggression. Dark Bead has a nasty reputation and for good reason. The output of this magic at close quarters is immense and the mere knowledge that you have it is enough to make people give you ground out of fear.
18
- Spoiler:
- Again, there is only 1 reason you should hit this point:
There really is little wrong with this thing. It instantly tells people to back off and pretty much forces a roll or some level of stamina consumption. It helps breaking poise and adds damage on top. In a way, it also protects against getting counter attacked and lets you pull off punishes much more easily. On top of the fact it has plentiful casts and it casts quickly.
It should be noted of a couple of existent tricks with this magic archtype, such as the fact that you can backstep closer to your enemies to reduce the travel distance of the Soulmasses or that you can lock-off turn to provoke separate launches to continuously add pressure. It is a good mindgaming tool.
- Spoiler:
Now, there are actually 2 reasons why you should go here despite this is only a specific requirement for 1 magic. First, 36 is a very peculiar range of INT. It is the one point where you gain access to TCC (Well, you did at 32, but I'll explain why I marked 36 as the breakpoint). Next, the actual magic:
Well, no one was caught by surprise. Pursuers is a super pressure Soulmass move that deals significant damage and adds better poise damage to work in. It is better than Soulmasses in every way except in cast time and uses, were both are significantly low. Regardless, this magic is very good to casts and although people have accustomed to dodging it, it still serves as a very dangerous tool and all of the tricks of Soulmasses can be applied to this.
You may be asking why I didn't mention Crystal Magic Weapon at the 25 interval. Well, imo, there is no reason to go to 25 for only this. It costs 10 points for an additional 60 AR buff (258), which is hardly worth it considering you can get more or similar out of standard scaling. It simply costs too much for just 1 Sorcery that is simply a slight improvement over something that is already good enough.
At 36, however, the bonus is about 100 extra points and it puts you more into the dedicated Wizard category in addition to giving your Pursuers and Tin Crystallization Catalyst. What I want to say is that if you want to go with CMW, you should go to 36.
Now, it seems ackward that at the beggining I was suggesting small points that were differentiating by like 1 or 3 points and now I bunch a couple of Sorceries that are 11 points apart. The reason is that pushing past 18 would put you into a more dedicated mage category and the points you would need to invest past it is huge. It would be bad to stop at 25 for a buff (when you already got a decent buff) when you could push to 32 to make it stronger, and it would be bad to stop at 32 when you can put a couple more to 36 for Soul Spear.
So, why Soul Spear? Well, Soul Spear is a Great, Great Soul Arrow. It has all the same properties with the exception of less casts and intensely more damage. 1 hit carries the weight of the some of the most devastating attacks in the game and landing it puts you at a massive advantage.
Of course, with the limited castings means that you would need to be more skill with the use of Long-range magic, no? Well, yes of course...
_+_+_+_+_+
Past this point there are no more breakpoints. There is no reason to stop at 44 or 50 unless you're trying to be a Logan and maximize your damage, which is not the domain of this thread. In reality, I would only recommend up to breakpoint 18 if you plan on being melee oriented and to 36 if you plan to mix range with melee.
That concludes the very Casul Mage's guide to Sorcery
.
