Elementalist, a HUGE let down

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Starxsword wrote:

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1) Master of Discord: Difficult to use because pen goes in opposite direction of damage conversion. There's a few skills you can use (perhaps the new frost orb or lightning orb things) to try to get the boost. It's most powerful with something like discharge, clearly, or perhaps a cold build that runs flame dash to move around. The only other way to use it is to add damage to your spells (like via anger) or to run double conversion (like fire->cold->lightning)

Depending on the numbers, you can for example run a hybrid Minion Elementalist build. You use Summon Raging Spirits to trigger the Ice Penetration, then, you have 4 seconds to use your Ice spells.
But the issue here really is the 4 seconds, that is not a long time at all. Unless you are able to increase its duration, having to switch spells every 4 seconds is not really worth that 20% penetration.

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4) Shaper of Desolation: This seems super powerful. That buff (Arcane Conflux) causes all damage to cause 3 status effects on every hit, regardless of crit (thresholds only can stop it).

Yes, this one is excellent, however the trigger condition is that it is good for regular enemies and not so good for bosses. 20% per kill trigger, that means 5 kills or so to trigger.

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I'd put it more in the line of the Saboteur in that caters heavily towards a particular set/style of builds.

And that is the main issue, it is too specific.
Right now, both Witch ascendant classes do not cater to regular 1 element builds, which I believe are the most common for witch caster classes.

I am kind of surprised that they went with Elementalist though, since witch start nodes are about Spell Damage/Cast Speed on one side and ES/Mana regen on the other side, I thought this class would be more of a sorceress type class where you get bonuses to spell damage.

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I use Glacial Cascade primarily, and I have Herald of Ice/Thunder + Cold to Fire so basically I do every damage type other than chaos/poison/bleed. I'm hoping that will mean I get triple penetration at all times with that one skill. It would be the only redeeming quality of this class to me.

No, you need to cast a Fire spell to trigger the 4 seconds of penetration for the Ice spell for you to spam.

1) Personally, even if it was more, I would still find it an un-intuitive, annoying even, playstyle. Even having to use flame dash for example would be really annoying. And obviously it is too niche for an asc class.

4) Thresholds will actually completely stop you on bosses. And even for clearing speed, it is meh at best. Shock won't really be very useful since the enemies it will apply to, already die quickly. Ignite from hits, even if you play with fire talents, will only be a marginal portion of your dps. Chill, again, will hardly be applied to bosses. And in retrospect, is this even half as powerful as most asc skills of other classes? I really can't see how it doesn't suck as an asc talent.

As for the rest. Yey for useless synergies. Beacon- 9 radius prolif would be very useful if all monster would just hug each other. And that's a whole asc talent. Paragon just plainly sucks. Might only be useful with some bridle niche build. And please don't tell me it will help with reflect mobs. Getting 40% damage for 4s once in 10 minutes in ridiculous at best and the reduction isn't even needed for them as they are now.



If anyone still believes in the elementalist, I'd love to compare your "synergy" builds with my shadow crit non-synergy builds when asc comes out. But then you will have to wait 2-3 more months for the next balance changes :)

Elementalist could have been great if only focused on witch "character": who is a witch? A woman incredibly well versed in casting, so she casts more efficiently, more quickly, more hard, and more "stinging" than anyone else

So i would have done something like this (example)

-30% less mana cost of skills
-30% more cast speed
-30% more spell damage
-all spells (both crit and non crit) fully ignores all enemies'resistances

After all, if a templar can ignore enemies resistances with a crit, just WHY a WITCH (=the magic specialist) cannot ignore them with a crit AND with a non crit?

Poor elementalist, what a shame

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RestInPieces wrote:

1) Personally, even if it was more, I would still find it an un-intuitive, annoying even, playstyle. Even having to use flame dash for example would be really annoying. And obviously it is too niche for an asc class.

And if the passive means your CoC or Myolner discharger gets free 20% all element penetration?

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Wispo wrote:

So i would have done something like this (example)

-30% less mana cost of skills
-30% more cast speed
-30% more spell damage
-all spells (both crit and non crit) fully ignores all enemies'resistances

If you did that you'd get flamed for lack of creativity.

"

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Wispo wrote:

So i would have done something like this (example)

-30% less mana cost of skills
-30% more cast speed
-30% more spell damage
-all spells (both crit and non crit) fully ignores all enemies'resistances

No offense, man, but you gotta be kidding me. 100% penetration? What? :DDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDD

Now explain me WHY a templar can have it and a witch cannot. Give me a valid reason why in final instance a templar can do MORE damage with a spell than a witch

I wonder how that templar elemental resistance ignorance works?
does it set res to zero and then all curses and pen gems hits res bellow zero, or is it fixed at zero no matter what?

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raics wrote:

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RestInPieces wrote:

1) Personally, even if it was more, I would still find it an un-intuitive, annoying even, playstyle. Even having to use flame dash for example would be really annoying. And obviously it is too niche for an asc class.

And if the passive means your CoC or Myolner discharger gets free 20% all element penetration?

That would be great and all, but if you have to get a Mjo or play CoC (especially on HC) to take advantage of it, that's a problem. It is way too niche. You have seen the rest of the classes right? Some talents will make your eyes roll. These are just... meh at best.

"

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Wispo wrote:

So i would have done something like this (example)

-30% less mana cost of skills
-30% more cast speed
-30% more spell damage
-all spells (both crit and non crit) fully ignores all enemies'resistances

No offense, man, but you gotta be kidding me. 100% penetration? What? :DDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDD

He didn't say '100% penetration', he said ignored. If you use elemental curses and reduce enemy resists to zero or below (or in the case they're naturally zero) the passive will do nothing.

Wouldn't be too broken, except in PvP of course, but nobody cares about that.

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RestInPieces wrote:

That would be great and all, but if you have to get a Mjo or play CoC (especially on HC) to take advantage of it, that's a problem. It is way too niche. You have seen the rest of the classes right? Some talents will make your eyes roll. These are just... meh at best.

I think it's ok, that talent was meant to be niche. If it was just for casters that alternate spells I'd say it's a bit too niche, but trigger dischargers are fairly popular.

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raics wrote:

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Wispo wrote:

So i would have done something like this (example)

-30% less mana cost of skills
-30% more cast speed
-30% more spell damage
-all spells (both crit and non crit) fully ignores all enemies'resistances

If you did that you'd get flamed for lack of creativity.

These would have been only the "backbone", for the restant part (the creativity one) i pass :)

"

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Wispo wrote:

So i would have done something like this (example)

-30% less mana cost of skills
-30% more cast speed
-30% more spell damage
-all spells (both crit and non crit) fully ignores all enemies'resistances

No offense, man, but you gotta be kidding me. 100% penetration? What? :DDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDD

I don't think Wispo meant it literally, but as a general idea.

They could have made better talents that applied to all elemental witch builds like:
"-Chance on cast for an extra projectile or chain." (here's your secret arc nerf :P)

or something that fits the elementalist even more:
"-Reduced thresholds of all ailments"
Which would actually be useful with bosses as well, for a change.

or "ailments have an extra effect for you elementalists only because we love you and want to differentiate your playstyle - ignite makes enemies+bosses (for a reduced dur) flee, shock makes them confused (hit randomly) or burns their mana and chill/freeze makes them blind or smth"

Let me make the class, seriously, duh.