Wizard Ice Nuke Question

[moghedancarns]

I am having trouble understanding why Icy Spear of the Soloist and Ancient: Destruction of Ice have 12 second recast delays.

They are our most mana effecient standard nukes, but this is to be expected. All in game and item design philosophy I have observed tends to support that Ice is to be the Wizard's most powerful element. In line with the effiencency, however, they are also the lightest hitting of our three elements.

As such, they are the fastest casting of the three. However, the recast delay gives them the slowest refire by a fair margin.

All of this combines to give Ice our weakest DPS in the single target Nuke department, non relic.

 

[Tarutao]

Well... you could always consider alternating nukes.

Icy Spear of Solist and Frostflame/Lure of the Elements is often a good combo to go back and forth on.

Tears of the Void (or Tarhansar) and Icy Spear of Solist is also a good combo, and it does quite a bit of damage for the mana cost while the rain helps keep your aggro a bit lower.

Our ice nukes are awesome just as they are.

 

[moghedancarns]

I am not asking for work arounds.

I am asking why it exists.

 

[Allielyn]

Because the mana:damage ratio is the best in the game? What you want it to have a super low recast too? No way.

 

[Syalara]

Um...it does have a super high recast.

 

[moghedancarns]

Icy is 4.0

EEE is 3.8
Sunstrike is 3.5

The lower Draught of Ice is still 3.4

Frostflame is 4.4, but a higher level.

Yes, AoI is 5.2, but it is an Ancient. However...

The Relic Fire is 4.4

The Archaic is 4.9 and ice based.

 

[Syalara]

Why are you listing cast times when your issue was with recast delays? Or am I not understanding something.

 

[Allielyn]

Um...it does have a super high recast.

Sorry I fail at communicating today. Fixed!

 

[moghedancarns]

But Icy doesn't have a super good mana ratio...
it is, at best, right on par for it's placement in the lines.

 

[robopirateninja]

Are those numbers you posted the damage to mana ratio?

If so it looks like solist is already the best non-raid-drop spell efficiency wise, and by chaining solist and your ancient you acheive a better damage to mana ratio than straight casting any of the spells that do not come with recast timers.

I discounted frostflame since as a dual element spell it is only operating at that efficiency when neither component is resisted, which makes its use situational at best.

You might not be able to do as much dps with straight ice nukes, but you can do less dps for longer, resulting in more total damage in a fight where you don'tneed to burn the mob.

I think the spells are balanced now.

 

[Temellin]

They are deffo balanced, if you are just using ice nukes there is something wrong with you :dumb:. Yes spells have a recast, no that doesn't make them worthless, Wizards are already GREAT dps, just because you can chain ice nukes doesn't mean your DPS is ruined.

 

[moghedancarns]

Once again...

I was asking a VERY specific question, on why the delay existed, on two very specific spells. Currently, they are the only Single Target DDs in a wizard's line with such a feature. Given that the two spells are in the Wizard's thematically strongest line, I thought it odd that the top spell of the line had this unusual feature, one that it shared with its Ancient Version.

I was not... NOT... looking for work arounds, because given that I leveled a wizard to 65, I was able to figure those out.

I am not giving insight into my lack of strategy. In the actual playing of the game, a huge number of varibles exist at any one time. I have only pointed to the empirical data, as ancedotal evidence is not considered worthwhile as an opening arguement. I would appreciate if it was not considered a valid rebuttal, as well.

I am also not saying that Ice, in any way, "sucks". I have not said my DPS is "ruined". In fact, I have done no complaining of any kind. I have asked why something is so. I have stated that the top nuke of my thematically strongest line is the lowest DPS of the the three total lines of which I have access. This is empirical truth.



Allielyn alone has given a supposed reason. Please note, I did not stoop to hyperbole to refute the arguement with mention of the 5 mana nukes. I have countered with empirical data showing that one of the spells listed, Icy Spear of the Soloist, does not qualify under that reasoning, as it does not have a hugely superior ratio. Ancient Destruction of Ice does have that trait, but it is also an ancient spell.

Syalara, those numbers are the flat, unmodifed value of point of damage per mana spent, not the casting speed. It is intended to refute Allielyn's arguement.

 

[Thinkmeats]

Yo I've seen you bark up this tree before in other threads and the endless parade of crosseyed looks you get from all the other wizards might suggest a change in the way you ought to think about these ice spells.

The short version is that the recasts exist to encourage you to think a little harder than just hammering one spell over and over again. The long version you'll have to get from your wizardly peers.

 

[Tarutao]

I have done no complaining of any kind. I have asked why something is so.

Fair enough.

The answer of "to give variety to a set of spells that could easily become as mind-numbing as a CH chain" satisfies me in that regard. Given the wizard's extensive use of Direct Damage spells and the fairly spammable nature of the fire-based nukes, it's not too much of an annoyance.