Request: Battle Mage?

[Pharcyde]

I just switched from a Int to Dex mage. Right as I switch I see a high lvl Int mage that just dominates. I can't seem to get it right so if someone could post a battle mage setup that would be great.

- How much Int, Dex, Str?
- Skill attribute distribution?
- What type of gear to get? (Mana boosting, heath boosting, ect.)

Thanks :) .

UPDATED:

I still cannot believe this thread has survived.

Anyways guys I am now a experienced level 50 player. I will tell you guys my favorite build.

Skills:
5 0 5 1
5 5 5 5
5 3 5 5 - They are in the same order as the skill chart in game.

I put 100% of my stats into int. I don't really care for survivability because the best defense is a good offense.

Gear: Cyber Armor and helmet, for weapon I use keeper staff.

[Royce]

Are you asking about an Int Mage build? If so, you want Int enough to equip Cosmos gear, then the rest in more Int, Dex, or a combination of the two. I'm currently trying to figure out the best combination, and am working with a 104 Dex build that seems to do much better than pure Int. For skills:
5, 5, 5, 1
5, 2, 5, 5
5, 1, 5, 5
Or if you don't think you'll use frost:
5, 0, 5, 1
5, 5, 5, 5
5, 3, 5, 5
Or if you really want to max mana shield armor buff (though I don't recommend this):
5, 0, 5, 1
5, 3, 5, 5
5, 5, 5, 5

[Wbto-Angeluscustos]

i dont get royces thing are thoses for the skill attributes?

[Royce]

i dont get royces thing are thoses for the skill attributes?

Yes, just like on the skill screen. For mage
Heal, Frost, lightning, Rez
Fire, Ice, Drain, Weakness
Nightmare, Shield, BOV, BOM

To the OP, just realized you may not be looking for a level 50 build. If so, what level are you?

[Pharcyde]

Yes, just like on the skill screen. For mage
Heal, Frost, lightning, Rez
Fire, Ice, Drain, Weakness
Nightmare, Shield, BOV, BOM

To the OP, just realized you may not be looking for a level 50 build. If so, what level are you?

I'm level 22 but I am looking for a long term build all the way up to 50.

How much Int for Cosmos?

The attribute stats are the best battle mage setups? Because I don't want to be a healing mage I want to be a mage that actually can inflict some damage.

[Ritax]

I've only been playing this game for a week. LOL but i've read a lot of posts and this is what I currently have/aiming for...

- How much Int, Dex, Str? I'm an INT/Dex mage so nothing in STR besides the base... I have enough DEX (37) so my hit is at 100% hit rating and the rest i'm putting in INT... my maximum will be 150 something INT when I get to level 50 and the rest in DEX.

- Skill attribute distribution? someone else can recommend this but I think it depends on your playing style - some spells are useless if you try add more than 1 skill point. such as Revive, Frostbite, Mana Shield - just my opinion

- What type of gear to get? (Mana boosting, heath boosting, ect.)
I like mana boosting gear M/s... you don't have to use too many mana potions.

Thanks .

[Wbto-Angeluscustos]

toth gear for M/s boosting for lvl 45's

[Royce]

I'm level 22 but I am looking for a long term build all the way up to 50.

How much Int for Cosmos?

The attribute stats are the best battle mage setups? Because I don't want to be a healing mage I want to be a mage that actually can inflict some damage.


The requirements for Cosmos are up to 158 Int. However, you can get away with only 130 easily (and even less with some effort) by using gear bonuses to meet requirements. The thing is this, Dex increases base damage which affects skills and weapon damage. Int improves damage less but boosts skill damage through stat driven skills (and heal strength). Because of the crit from Dex, I would say you want to max Dex as much as possible for the sort of build you seem to be going for. FYI though, all mages should be "healing mages", even if your focus is damage. Healing is just pressing one button regularly, and will keep you alive and help your tank which also keeps you alive (mages who do big damage are toast without a good tank, particularly in AO3). So basically I'd say build enough Int to equip top gear your level, and put the rest in Dex. For skills at 22, I'm not sure which ones you haven't learned yet but here are some general guidelines.
1. Put 1 point in Rez, mana shield, BOV, and BOM as soon as you learn them.
2. Max heal and lightning first
3. For damage, get 1 point in Icestorm and then work on building up firestorm for the combo. Also get nightmare maxed asap. Finally, BOM has a great crit self buff, so work on that when you can.
4. If all the damage you are doing causes you to take too much aggro, get points into BOV, the armor buff is a life saver, and weakness will help too.
For gear, to do max damage, you want a staff, preferably an AOE staff like a fireblaster or ice blast staff. Weapon damage also influences skill damage so by equipping a powerful staff, your skills will also do more damage.

[Pharcyde]

The requirements for Cosmos are up to 158 Int. However, you can get away with only 130 easily (and even less with some effort) by using gear bonuses to meet requirements.

Thanks for everything Royce that really helped. Quick question though, how would you do that? I am at 114 int now. Should I go any higher if I can equipt cosmos with less than 158?




I've only been playing this game for a week. LOL but i've read a lot of posts and this is what I currently have/aiming for...

- How much Int, Dex, Str? I'm an INT/Dex mage so nothing in STR besides the base... I have enough DEX (37) so my hit is at 100% hit rating and the rest i'm putting in INT... my maximum will be 150 something INT when I get to level 50 and the rest in DEX.

- Skill attribute distribution? someone else can recommend this but I think it depends on your playing style - some spells are useless if you try add more than 1 skill point. such as Revive, Frostbite, Mana Shield - just my opinion

- What type of gear to get? (Mana boosting, heath boosting, ect.)
I like mana boosting gear M/s... you don't have to use too many mana potions.

Thanks .

Thanks Ritax

[Royce]

For the exact minimum Int for a 3 piece cosmos set (since I'm assuming you'll be using a staff for damage), I think you could do it with 125 Int by equiipping a low level 4 piece set of 7 Int bonus items, switching out a couple for Thoth (8 Int), then equipping the cosmos helm, armor, and staff, in that order, but I'll have to crunch the numbers. I'll report back ;)

Edit: Yes it should work as I described. Let me know if you have any questions about the details.

[Pharcyde]

Edit: Yes it should work as I described. Let me know if you have any questions about the details.

Thanks yeah sounds good I'll give that a try once I reach the level to use the gear :). So I am hearing alot about a gear that requires 200 int for lvl 50? Is that true? If so can it be equipped with the same strategy to get cosmos?

[Royce]

So I am hearing alot about a gear that requires 200 int for lvl 50? Is that true?

No the Cosmos (highest level 50 Int) requirements range from 154 to 158. So you can start as low as 125 Int and build to the requirements using gear boosts.

[Pharcyde]

Alright sweet thankyou for all your help Royce :D! Perfect timing too I have 124 int and 5 points unspent so no excess :)

[Ritax]

Are you asking about an Int Mage build? If so, you want Int enough to equip Cosmos gear, then the rest in more Int, Dex, or a combination of the two. I'm currently trying to figure out the best combination, and am working with a 104 Dex build that seems to do much better than pure Int. For skills:
5, 5, 5, 1
5, 2, 5, 5
5, 1, 5, 5
Or if you don't think you'll use frost:
5, 0, 5, 1
5, 5, 5, 5
5, 3, 5, 5
Or if you really want to max mana shield armor buff (though I don't recommend this):
5, 0, 5, 1
5, 3, 5, 5
5, 5, 5, 5

Royce, I like this build
5, 5, 5, 1
5, 2, 5, 5
5, 1, 5, 5

but is it necessary to go 5 on BoV or BoM? I don't see the 12 sec self buff as being that useful... can you shed some light on that? I'm guessing it's more of a PvP build? I'm pure PvE at the moment and don't plan on doing any PVP.

I was thinking maybe
5, 5, 5, 1
5, 5, 5, 5
5, 1, 2, 5

[Royce]

Royce, I like this build
5, 5, 5, 1
5, 2, 5, 5
5, 1, 5, 5

but is it necessary to go 5 on BoV or BoM? I don't see the 12 sec self buff as being that useful... can you shed some light on that? I'm guessing it's more of a PvP build? I'm pure PvE at the moment and don't plan on doing any PVP.

I was thinking maybe
5, 5, 5, 1
5, 5, 5, 5
5, 1, 2, 5

You definitely want to max out BOV. The defensive buff is short lasting, but very effective. At lower levels, you can get away without it, but by AO3, you will come to value it as much as any other skill. It lasts as long as mana shield, and is a better option in almost every situation since it will not cause you to lose all your mana. The self buff of BOM is also very nice, though for a support mage without interest in PvP, it would be okay not to max it out. Anyway, long story short, I definitely recommend maxing both self buffs. If you really want to max out Frost, I would probably shift points from Ice and/or Drain, but Drain does more damage, and Ice is AOE of course, so that's why I go with the build I described.

[Ritax]

Oh yeah I never thought about that I can alternate mana shield and BoV so I always have some sort of protection.

Thanks, your build does sound good. I'll go with your initial build.

5, 5, 5, 1
5, 2, 5, 5
5, 1, 5, 5

[Pharcyde]

Okay so I am going smooth on my build. I decided I don't want steal hp or frost bolt. I just think that a small single attack like that isnt worth the mana. This means I would be maxing out Revive and buffer sheild. Any suggestions?

[Royce]

This means I would be maxing out Revive and buffer sheild. Any suggestions?

Don't max revive, that's the worst way to spend SP. All it does is lower the mana cost, and that won't even matter once you get good regen gear (level 30-35 or so). Maxing mana shield is not a great value either (2 points of armor buff per SP (you get like 8 per SP in BOV)), but if you already have BOV maxed, and want to get more defense, then spending in mana shield is okay IMO. As for single attacks, in general I would agree, but Drain is your highest damage skill as well, so is very handy for bosses (and PvP of course). Frost I could give or take. One useful feature is that having two freeze skills, you can combo one with firestorm, and set up the bear freeze/stomp combo with the other.

[Varking]

What is the appeal for doing a STR Mage over a DEX mage? STR is Pally and Dex is Battle Mage? But what is the big difference? I got my Dex Bow Bear to 29 so I am taking a break to level up another character and it is going to be a dex or str mage.

[Lapinsalaingr]

Just a Note to thank Royce , so useful to this community... Keep up giving us light !

[Pharcyde]

So I am now officially lvl 50!!!! I can't believe this page is still alive! lvl 20-50! I am currently a int mage with points in str. Here are my stats.

125 Int.
2 dex.
115 str.

Here are my Attributes

5 3 5 1
5 5 0 5
5 5 5 5

Now you might be wondering why I did not max out DR and FB. This is because I never use them. The only reason frost got any was because I had 3 points left and I didn't want to waste in revive. DR is completely useless because I never get a chance to use it. In boss battles i'm pumping out heals like mad and also if a boss is hitting me, im not going to wait for a spell. I'm going to blast buffs and potions. Magic Shield I maxed because its extra buff. Were mages, not tanks or Damagers... Anything that can help me survive more than one blast against a boss is a must, especially when your the only healer in your group.

Why Str and not Dex? Str increases your survivability and damage. Dex increases dodge, but not a lot. I have 302 health as a mage, during a boss battle I can take 1 hit from a boss and berily survive with a sliver of hp. So Str increases survivability.

[omnipresence]

I think Drain Life is one of the most underrated skills. It has a long range and does high damage. It's a great skill to use to pull mobs individually to try and break up a room (especially helpful when soloing or in smaller groups). The healing effect is a side bonus but not good to depend on.

[Pharcyde]

Yeah I have made the switch over. I have 0 frostbite, 5 drain life, and 3 mana sheild.

Went from dual build to pure int as well.

5 0 5 1
5 5 5 5
5 3 5 5

[Sky../]

Yeah I have made the switch over. I have 0 frostbite, 5 drain life, and 3 mana sheild.

Went from dual build to pure int as well.

5 0 5 1
5 5 5 5
5 3 5 5

Why did you switch back to pure int?

[Zeus]

Spells are MUCH MUCH stronger with pure int, as well as heals, that's probably why he went pure int, and pure int raises hit percent almost as much as dex now. Just slightly lower.

[Sky../]

But pure int = squishy right?

[Pharcyde]

I switched because I got bored of Dual.

Pure int is much more effective and Int mages are not really squishy with the whole nerf and rebalance 'n all.

More effective gold farming. I don't even need to do combos anymore. I can clear a entire mob in plasma pyramid by casting random spells. If I do combos then I run for like 5-10 seconds with no enemies so it gets boring.

[Sky../]

I see.

Funny, i'm a low level pure int mage who was about to respec to pally/dual. I guess i'll put that on hold for now.

[Pharcyde]

Dual was fun when it was the best. Now everyone can tank so the need for pallys/warbirds/bears anymore.

[Sky../]

I see. Thank you. Always nice to hear the opinion of someone experienced.

[omnipresence]

Yeah I have made the switch over. I have 0 frostbite, 5 drain life, and 3 mana sheild.

Went from dual build to pure int as well.

5 0 5 1
5 5 5 5
5 3 5 5

That's my build and I'm pure int as well.

[Nebbor]

Pharcyde, why keeper staff instead of mirage staff? Do you get a set bonus with cyber helm, armor, and keeper staff? Is there even a set bonus with cyber gear? Or is the ol helm, armor, and mirage staff the only combination for a set bonus? How is eye/wand in comparison to mirage staff and set bonus for PvE and PvP? Sorry for all the questions, new to the mage character. Thanks in advance!

[Pharcyde]

There are two bonus's from cyber.
1.) hidden buff from armor itself
2.) Full set has a set bonus buff.

But keepers staff is still better even with the cyber bonus.

For mirage vs. wand and eye:
Go for wand and eye. Mirage bonus is junk. Wand and Eye gives you a ton of defense for survivability.