Stormweaver Feedback: The Elemental Storm Ascendancy Skill

Reference Point: I've got a level 88 Stormweaver that I'm using to farm tier 15 maps. My primary skill is arc, and I'm currently toying around with a crit + shock version.

I haven't yet had a chance to test this build against the harder endgame content -- mostly because I've only found one Citadel, so far, and only two logbooks have had Olroth -- but I think I've made it far enough to give my thoughts on Elemental Storm.

I love this skill, and I think it's one of the coolest ideas for an ascendancy-based skill that I've seen so far -- especially for players wanting a spellcaster fantasy -- but it's got its problems.

1. It Cannot Move

I initially thought this wouldn't be too big of a deal, but after playing high-tier maps and harder content, my thoughts have changed.

Elemental Storm being stationary becomes a problem in two common scenarios:

(1) high-mobility monsters simply running out of it, even with the hinder effect slowing them down;
(2) bosses walking or teleporting out of it.

The 4Head response here is to simply kite around your storms, but in high-tier maps and boss arenas, this isn't always an option; as a result, you often end up with what essentially amounts to a moral support skill.

Another response might be to heavily invest in freeze and electrocute, so that your enemy never moves. Absolutely, you can do that -- but I think that response is symptomatic of a more overarching problem with the game, where the ideal solution to many hurdles is to find a way to perma-CC your enemy, no matter what build you're playing. (But that's another topic.)

2. Base Area of Effect Might Be Too Small

I've invested in a little area of effect -- the Magnified Effect support gem, which grants 40% more Area of Effect -- but this only brings the radius to 2.2 meters.

Given that the skill is stationary, and that many monsters can simply walk out of it (even with the hinder effect), this AoE value doesn't always feel good.

3. Base Damage Might Be Too Low

I'm still not entirely sure what to make of this point -- mostly because I'm not yet sure if I'm making a mistake by trying to build it for damage (instead of, say, rapid ailment application). I need to test more before I can go into more detail with this point.

At the moment, all I can say is that the endgame damage feels underwhelming.

In summary:

(1) Skill can't move.
(2) AoE feels a little too small.
(3) Damage feels too low in the endgame (campaign damage felt fine).
(4) Otherwise, great skill with a lot of build potential. It's obviously not unusable, or I wouldn't be making my way through tier 15 content with it.

Suggestions:

(1) Allow the skill to move.
(2) Either increase the base radius at the cost of damage, or increase the damage, but leave the radius as is.

Note: There's an occasional bug with the skill, at the moment, that makes the storms not spawn where they're supposed to. Instead of spawning on the enemy you've dealt a critical strike to, the storm spawns on or near your character. I've already made a bug report thread about this (complete with pictures and a reference number), but since I'm providing feedback here, I figured I might as well mention it again.