DPS vs Damage - a detailed comparison

[Alhuntrazeck]

Your guide is good But sorcerers knew that always. DMG is better than DPS.

Anyways. Gorgeous job Hope for more awesome guides like that one

Now that is the place to show to that noobs XD

Actually, many, MANY sorcs don't kno. Adding ti the confusion is the stupid firesquid and the logic "the more expensive tthe better" and since firesquid adds so much Dps...logically, to those sorcerers, DPS, like tthe staff, must be superior.

Lovely guide.

[JaytB]

I want to see your bald blue head

He has complexes about his baldness, that's why he always wears a cap

Your guide is good But sorcerers knew that always. DMG is better than DPS.

Anyways. Gorgeous job Hope for more awesome guides like that one

Now that is the place to show to that noobs XD

Actually, many, MANY sorcs don't kno. Adding ti the confusion is the stupid firesquid and the logic "the more expensive tthe better" and since firesquid adds so much Dps...logically, to those sorcerers, DPS, like tthe staff, must be superior.

^This

You can't imagine how many dps vs Dmg discussions I had in game with people calling me a noob because dps was supposedly the way to go.

To be fair, there are circumstances where dps can be useful. For example in purely PvP builds where people choose to go for a more protective skill build.

Even now, I still see end-game PvE sorcerers running around with high dps stats, and just a couple of days ago I had the same dps vs Dmg discussion all over again. As hunter said, people find it hard to understand that cheaper can be better.

You would think everyone knows by now, but in reality there are still many ill informed people in this game.

I'm definitely not saying I got it all figured out, I'm focussing on my sorcerer a bit more lately to get a better grip on how to use all the skills to their fullest. I've discovered some really interesting crowd control techniques that can considerably speed up specific runs, some things I don't see people use very often. But that's a whole other topic. Hoping to get to that later

[Revealing]

Gj on making guide quitted pl few days ago
Too boring xD

[iRay]

Hmm so what weapon should I get for DMG? I'm level 27.

[ruizerwin]

Nice post... going to check on my mage stat

[Foocough]

blep

[bladescythe]

I'm lost lol... Complicated for me :/

[atomic339]

Thx

The high Dmg build consists out of the following:

* Mythic mage helm (lv26 sealord of security helm would do, but your skill Dmg would decrease with 15 points, or 327 max Dmg for firebolt)
* lv26 sealord wrappings of security
* Ring: Lv25 sea captain's ring of warfare. It strangely adds 3 more to your Dmg stat as compared to the lv26 one. Talking about weird mechanics lol.
* pendant: Lv25 Infused brooch of assault. The lv26 one adds +0.4 Dmg, but I haven't found one yet. I do know they exist though, since a friend of mine showed it to me.

All points went into INT for maximum damage.

My skills are (for now, cause I change all the time lol):

* Fire 5/5: I included the hit debuff because it seems to help me stay alive. Fairly high Dmg spell, AOE (damaging multiple enemies) with fairly low cooldown (4s). 14m range, so can be fired far away from danger.
* Lightning with 1st and 3rd skill unlocked (15% more Dmg and 250% Dmg on crit). Really low cooldown (3sec)/high Dmg skill. 12meter range, so ideal to just stay outside those nasty red circles that some bosses cast, while still being able to land your skill

Now, the next 2 skills are debatable and are more personal preference. I love time shift for its initial impact Dmg and DOT (Dmg over time), but I simply hate dropping that clock. Sometimes the drop locations seem to life their own live and a skill with fairly high cooldown (10sec) goes wasted. You also need to get almost on top of a boss to drop it in the right location and so risking your squishy mages' life.

I went with following 2 skills:

* Gale force with 1, 2 and 3. AOE Dmg, and I love to run fast lol. But seriously, that speed boost can save your life sometimes. It's also nice that the boost doesn't end before your skill cooldown, so you could almost continuously charge it up and keep running quick. I also included the 25% dodge self-buff that lasts for 3seconds. It's just long enough to get in your 9m range and out of it again with a fair chance to dodge any attacks and so stay alive. Skill cool down is medium (5.5s), but not as bad as time shift (10sec).
* frost bolt: with 1 and 2. 20% chance of an AOE attack (20%) and DOT + very low cooldown (3sec) and high range (14m) skill. DOT only works when charged though, as far as I could tell.

As passives:

Knowledge: 5/5
Might: 5/5 I'll probably put that into Dmg in the future, but until STS fixes the stats issue for Dmg increase (not being visible in stats page) I'll stay with might. Problem with my build is that it attracts agro like mad. And you need some health points 'when' (not 'if') a boss or mob comes for your tiny blue behind.

Pet: I went with Clyde (monkey), adds 10STR, 30 INT and 7% crit. The arcane ability isn't bad either, it's a chance to stun (I'd say 50/50 chance) and even works on bosses. It's only drawback is its fairly long cooldown time of around 18 seconds (if I remember correctly)

Colton might be better for the high crit buff for 2 or 3 seconds. Colton also has a fairly low cooldown of 7-8'ish seconds if I remember correct. And its arcane ability adds a lot of crit but lasts only very briefly.

Overall, I like Clyde better. For looks (lol), its stun and the permanent 7%crit increase. 10STR also adds another 100HP's to your health bar.

So, that's my build and gear. It does huge Dmg and gives fair protection but it sucks mana like crazy. If you can live with the mana usage, I'd definitely give it a shot

I don't understand skills. Can someone explain me this?

1. Fire 5/5
2. Lighting 1 and 3
3.?
4.?

So you use time shift and one of: frost or gale force?

Can you explain how do you use this skills on mobs or in pvp?

[branniac7]

Nice post... going to check on my mage stat

Didnt know u had a mage. Lol. We used to be in the same guild.

[branniac7]

Hmm so what weapon should I get for DMG? I'm level 27.

Oracles crystal of force 26

[Melodicdeath]

Good review. You should take note of one important point, armor and damage reduction works differently in al than in pl. Although I still agree with going with a higher damage build, the mechanics in al makes dps not as useless a stat as in pl. In al damage inflicted is a factor of your damage times a percentage damage reduction based on your enemies armor. It is not damage minus armor like it is in pl. You can see how this distinction makes a huge difference...

In PL: say you have two weapons with 300 dps, one a high dps weapon with 100 damage and the second a high damage weapon with 300 damage. Throw in the mix an enemy with 75 armor. With the high dps weapon in one second you will only do (100-75)x3=75 damage. With the high damage weapon in one second you will do 300-75=225 damage. Here you can clearly see that a high dps weapon is not as effective as a high damage weapon against an enemy with high armor.

In AL: say you have two weapons with 300 dps, one a high dps weapon with 100 damage and the second a high damage weapon with 300 damage. Throw in the mix an enemy with 75 armor, which for the sake of this argument (since the numbers are not really known) yeilds 50% damage reduction. With the high dps weapon in one second you will do (100x0.50)x3=150 damage. With the high damage weapon in one second you will do 300x0.50=150 damage. So disregarding skill damage (which is a huge deal with mages and mob clearing), the same amount of damage is done to a single enemy over time with a high dps versus a high damage weapon with the same dps.

Again, needless to say I would always choose a high damage weapon over a high dps weapon as I focus my build to clearing mobs and charging aoe skills. I just wanted to clarify the armor and damage reduction side of things, as this makes dps not as useless a stat in al as it is in pl.

Back in the day I was all about dps..now, upon returning to AL after a year, I'm finding myself leaning more toward damage after a week of playing and experimenting.

[cooletzzz]

I just want to ask. How can I focus upgrading the damage than dps. What type of gear and weapon which is high on damage because I love using skills always than dps. I got all myth set but still trying to look some stuff that will add my damage not dps. I prepare damage skills

[Xeusx]

Nice necro ._.

[Clerious]

Nice

[Glizzer Dave Chaves]

DPS is for pvp they usually use Storm sword than maul

[Sceazikua]

I just want to ask. How can I focus upgrading the damage than dps. What type of gear and weapon which is high on damage because I love using skills always than dps. I got all myth set but still trying to look some stuff that will add my damage not dps. I prepare damage skills

The only thing that happens to change your damage and dps ratio is weapon, nothing else. Like staffs and dagger and sword, they give more dps than damage. Guns, bows, and hammers are often used for damage.

[jb57542]

I just want to ask. How can I focus upgrading the damage than dps. What type of gear and weapon which is high on damage because I love using skills always than dps. I got all myth set but still trying to look some stuff that will add my damage not dps. I prepare damage skills

A few simple things you can do to focus on damage not dps.

1. Go full int with your base stats.
Int increases your % bonus dmg which multiplies your weapon dmage.
2. Invest in passive int/str/dex and crit skills.
The % dmg passive is useless now which I explained in reason 3
3. Use a pet that gives the follow boost in int, %dmg increase, crit and increases health/str.
The reason you want % dmg is because only your highest % dmg buff is applied which is why passive %dmg is usless skill since most pets give a higher buff. Ethyl is a prime example of a god cheap mage pet.
4. Brutality (int/Str) and assault (int/Dex) weapons and jewelry typically give you best damage stats as they give primary stats as int with bonus damage.
Currently the new expedition rifles are best for weapons.
Lunar/tarlok pendenants and blood/arcane/troll rings are best non-arcanre jewelry.

[Alhuntrazeck]

DPS isn't completely crap now, though, I have to say. Because with 1 attack skill in PvP (fireball), you need all the DPS you can get! Which is why I prefer a staff in PvP.

[Blackwingz]

excellent guide!

[Mangkengkoy]

Thanks for the info really helps alot