Arch-Mage help here

[Bilko]

Ok, i did write a whole load of stuff about a tri-sorcy i was intended to do... since by my own stupidity i got all my text deleted, i'll go straight to the point...

my goal was to make a tri elemental sorc mainly for pvm that could rush around pple, survive a 8 player game in hell, and if possible, do some mf runs for some extra neat stuff... the suggested gear for me was the following:

wizardspike
stormshield
upped vipermagi
shako
some nice rare godly sorc ammy
ravenfrost
dwar star
thundergod's vigor
magefist
and some other neat boots with some nice mods
some skill gcs and prolly resist stuff, along with facets as needed

the intention is to have a modest damage reduction, and all three elemental absorbs, when im pvm besides some resist, the best possible with that gear...

if u could help me out here on gear i'd be grateful

but hey, why would an arch-mage wannabe asking help only for gear? lets talk skills now, the main dillemma of arch-mages....

my inicial intention was to make a sorc with hydra/fo/nova, but friend suggested ts instead... then i thought... if i were to make with ts, i would get only one monster per thunder, but i wouldnt have to worry that much about mana, but yet i'd be kinda slow to kill FI/CI monsters...

on the other hand, a nova sorc would be faster killer, but would need some hi warmth/energy(which would be a pain to sustain even with pots), leaving less stats to work on dex for block and/or vit for more hp... the skeleton of the skill build would be

prereqs
20 hydra
20 ts/nova
20 fo
1 es
1 in the first sorc cold armor

and the rest i'd fool around with masteries, but since i really suck at math and formulae, i'd like some advice on that too, considering overall versatility, killing power/speed and fun


thanks already for the help :thumbsup: , hope someone can help me... im really lost and really dont wanna mess up and find out i did it l8er with my sorc...

[EnerSense]

Making a Tri-Elementalist is a challenge for anyone. I don't know if you looked at the Archmage threads in the Sorceress Guide Library because it gives you a lot of useful info. In one of the threads, I found this skill calculator link useful http://stud4.tuwien.ac.at/~e9325732/skillcalc.html. I'm guessing that you're already using a skill calculator but if not I recommend this one. Since I don't have the time I'd like to experiment on the best combinations for this type of sorc, I follow the suggestions in the threads. One build was suggested by Melianor which I am currently working on:

Meteor 20 pts
Fireball 7 pts
Fire Mastery 1 pt

Charged Bolt 20 pts
Lightning 15 pts
Lightning Mastery 5 pts

Frozen Orb 20 pts
Cold Mastery 1-7 pts

Anyway hope any of this info helps. I also have a spare Magefist if you want it. Let me know. :)

[melianor]

prereqs
20 hydra
20 ts/nova
20 fo
1 es
1 in the first sorc cold armor



That will indeed be a GREAT challenge for an Archmage build. I think you can do it with LOTS of +skills, but still it will be waek for an Archmage build.

We do have a some good threads here about Archmages. Look into them, since they will also give you the optimal skillsetup!

Like here:
Stormcryer's tanking tri-elementalist (pvm)
Zixao's Tri-Elementalist Guide

Otherwise Archmages are very viable builds that use ALOT of skills to survive and can do yo very nicely on their own. They are mostly meant for playing alone, since they will lack the big damage output that gives good support in 8 player games.

I love these builds and have couple myself, mostly using Fireball, Meteor, Charged Bolt, Lightning and Frozen Orb. No ES though since that only works well in conjunction with Telekinesis. Telekinesis alone is also a skill this build will use, though not for picking up gold.

[Liliel]

I'd recommend a cold/fire dual tree sorc if you want to play in 8 players (with liberal use of Static Field). The damage you get with Archmages means it's tough to go past 4 players.

Having played a bit with Nova and TS in the past... I've kinda come to the conclusion that Chain Lightning is the only Lightning skill you can use if you seriously want to actually kill anything with your lightning attack. Nova is good and has consistant damage, but it uses so much mana in a build that's already mana intensive. Thunderstorm is alright, it does a little damage in the background while you worry about your main skills, but it can be frustrating in Act5 where there's large mobs of dangerous cold immunes and all you've got to kill them with is an underpowered fire attack. Hydra without synergies might be a bit too much on the weak side... heck, Hydra with its synergies isn't all that strong. You might want to find a way to use Fireball/Meteor or Firewall. Just a suggestion.

Here's a skill setup I've come up with. If you want to try it, you'll have to tweak it a bit to account for the gear you want, since this setup was based on Tal's set.

20 Firewall 6k damage per sec
10 Fire Mastery
20 Frozen Orb 400+ damage
1+ Cold Mastery
20 Chain Lightning 1k average damage
6+ Lightning
11+ Lightning Mastery
12 prerequisites + static, teleport and warmth

I think it would prove to be a strong, well rounded setup.

[Bilko]

Its been some time since i last could visit this forum so i could read all suggestions given to me...

well, i should admit , i dont like at all skills such as meteor and firewall, since they are a pain to cast right on monsters IMHO, specially quick ones...

i thought about TS/Nova/FO coz i would have two 'shoot and forget' skills, and one whos really mana intensive, thats why i was thinking about raising some energy instead of placing many points into vit(which i think isnt thaaat great, sorcs get 1 life for each 1 vit).

i was thinking about a fireball/CL/FO arch mage, but i think it would be way too much mana stressing

besides, i've been thinking, i might sacrifice my 'elemental-immortality'(with all those three absorb items for cold fire and light) and focus on +skill items, so i could at least have some more arsenal...

i know, im persistent, i really would like to try a nova/hydra/fo arch mage, if someone could spare some time and PM-me or contact me via msn in order to help me out, i'd be grateful