Firestorm Vs Lightning

[ZedMaster]

Which is better? firestorm or lightning?

[Otukura]

Lightning:
--3 second cooldown(vs 5)
--Tiny bit more damage
--Small armor debuff(~3)

Firestorm
--Instant
--12m range(vs 8).
--Nearly the same damage

[sun light]

i dont like lightning...
cos u neet to hit the mobs first and after thet cast lightning.
for ex-if u walk into mobs and just cast lightning ure spell dont hit them. try it in forest, but firestorn isnt like that.
so .. im with firestorm

[Fairy]

In my opinion you def. need both.
I cannot make a dicision, which one is better.
I love both of them.

[Moogerfooger]

Firestorm: Needed for Hot Flash combo (mage self-combo)
Lightning: Needed for Nature Strike combo (with an archer around).

[Orcish]

FS ftw gotta love the knockback ability that comes with it.

[Navygreen]

Firestorm is better for me because it seems to do more damage and reach a lot further than the lightening. However, each has it's own uses. I have both at level 6 and they're both super powerful. I recommend leveling both skills to max.

[ECHUSER]

i spam lightning when i'm running with a bird that spams thorn root/wall. i setup combos for myself w ice before i use FS if there is no bird/the bird doesnt setup combos w thornwall/root) for me. both should eventually be maxed out.

[ZedMaster]

kewl to see other ppls opinions. I'd say they are both extremely important but i would have to pick firestorm as the best because if you got no good archer, your screwed and for me I play pl with my friend and he's a mage too and we're actually gnna twink together at 35. since neither of us are birds were prob gnna put one or two more points on firestorm. and its all really on how you play the game too ;D

[KhaosAngel]

I likey the Firestorm

[Palyna]

I like firestorm too~ cause of the combos.

[Zapoke]

Lightning > Firestorm. In PvP and PvE. Lightning is more practical. If you use a fire weapon (voodoo wand, gemblast staff, keeper staff) you still get an ice-fire combo, so technically don't don't need it for that.
Firestorm is better for one thing. Kiting. (it's 12 meter range instead of lightning's 8).
Lightning is better for several things. Fastest cd skill, 2nd lowest mana usage (behind frostbite), and more damage.
But, why choose one?

[Cytokinesis]

doesn't firestorm have a knockback?

[Grimtigrex]

random face fun..... Firestorm for me I like the damage on that better

[Zapoke]

random face fun..... Firestorm for me I like the damage on that better

It's less...

doesn't firestorm have a knockback?

Yes. A small one, and beckon makes it worthless.

[Ellyidol]

Yes. A small one, and beckon makes it worthless.

I'm assuming you didn't have the chance to see imperialelf in action before.

How can a skill same range as Beckon, which pushes back, become useless against it? We Beckon, you fire, our Beckon becomes worthless.

[Moogerfooger]

Lightning > Firestorm. In PvP and PvE. Lightning is more practical. If you use a fire weapon (voodoo wand, gemblast staff, keeper staff) you still get an ice-fire combo, so technically don't don't need it for that.
Firestorm is better for one thing. Kiting. (it's 12 meter range instead of lightning's 8).
Lightning is better for several things. Fastest cd skill, 2nd lowest mana usage (behind frostbite), and more damage.
But, why choose one?

Maybe in PvP, but in PvE Firestorm is just as important, if not more important than Lightning...Hot Flash combo is one of a mage's most important weapons/tools in PvE. Therefore your assumption that firestorm is only better than one thing (kiting...and no self-respecting mage kites in PvE except maybe a dex mage on a boss) is false, as there are no self-combos with lightning. Also, firestorm and lightning have roughly equal damage. Firestorm's min damage is slightly higher than lightning, and lightning has slightly higher max damage, but the average is about dead even. Another slight inaccuracy. Firestorm also has instant cast, unlike lightning, whcih someone already mentioned.

But your final point makes all that moot why choose just one, when you can have both, like you said?

[Orcish]

Maybe in PvP, but in PvE Firestorm is just as important, if not more important than Lightning...Hot Flash combo is one of a mage's most important weapons/tools in PvE. Therefore your assumption that firestorm is only better than one thing (kiting...and no self-respecting mage kites in PvE except maybe a dex mage on a boss) is false, as there are no self-combos with lightning. Also, firestorm and lightning have roughly equal damage. Firestorm's min damage is slightly higher than lightning, and lightning has slightly higher max damage, but the average is about dead even. Another slight inaccuracy.

But your final point makes all that moot why choose just one, when you can have both, like you said?

I was more or less going to say the same thing.

[Zapoke]

Maybe in PvP, but in PvE Firestorm is just as important, if not more important than Lightning...Hot Flash combo is one of a mage's most important weapons/tools in PvE. Therefore your assumption that firestorm is only better than one thing (kiting...and no self-respecting mage kites in PvE except maybe a dex mage on a boss) is false, as there are no self-combos with lightning. Also, firestorm and lightning have roughly equal damage. Firestorm's min damage is slightly higher than lightning, and lightning has slightly higher max damage, but the average is about dead even. Another slight inaccuracy. Firestorm also has instant cast, unlike lightning, whcih someone already mentioned.

The delay just wasn't something I feel is very important.. Actually, any smart Mage would rather kite a bit then get waked in the face with a sword that hits 200 out of 400 hp. The only reason I would kite personally is against strength characters. Mage vs Mage, and Mage vs Dex bird you gain nothing by kiting. Dex bear is different due to them being able to incapacitate anyone who gets within 2m.
The problem with hot flash, is it's a 1 enemy combo, unless you use the aeo ice, which has a long delay time.. And only has a 6m range. Making lightning, again, more practical. However, I'm not saying firestorm is bad, unlike several people above, saying that lightning isn't good.
I've gotten very good with elves.. I know how to use them. Kiting isn't a bad thing, and "self respecting" Mages do kite. I use to make builds based on high firestorm and drain, now I make them based off high lightning and drain.. This is levels 25, 30, 35. (I don't even have 6 fire at 35.) Any higher level then this(as in twink levels), and anyone who knows mages should have 6/6/6 firestorm/lightning/drain. :/
And I'm sorry this sounds kind of... Flame-ish, but I didn't assume firestorm was only good for kiting.. I really have tested fire-based builds on a lot of levels. >.<