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I think so as carnage is calculated off of initial damage and if you sneak attack your initial target the carnage damage will increase overall.

At about party level 11 it is a challenge if you scale to high level but doable with solid tactics. At level 13 / 14 it gets boring though except on a few bounties and if you decide to aggro everyone at once inside a certain abbey. Monks work well with ciphers now and reaping knives. So front line of zahua + pallegina, mid line durance + Maneha (with tall grass for example) and current back line could be pretty solid. Sagani in general is good dps but God forbid her pet dies which it does a lot than she is sad. And the barb and monk in this setup would be excellent dps in addition to the rogue. Gm can cc, pallegina tank and durance buff and heal. Aloth would excel at immediate cc but as long as Gm can throw a reaping knives quickly on zahua or your rogue she'll have more focus than she can spend the rest of the fight. There are a few tough enemies in the game at least on potd that are immune to both confusion and paralysis which means cipher can't do anything to them. That is why I do like a wizard and a cipher in a potd run party.

Legendary is not really such a big step from superior and once you can get it legit what's left to kill in the game anyways? Superior + durganized is pretty sweet already. As for duping items with helwax I made lead spitter superior + durganized and dupped it. Best resource investment imo as you get 2 superior versions of the hardest one shot hitting weapon in the game - a blunderbuss with extra dr rending. Two gunshots on my cipher and focus is maxed at 160. Go crazy by casting reaping knives + defensive mindweb immediately if need be.

What do you mean by optimize damage? I took a look at Maneha character profile and she is clocking at 1375 points of damage done per combat hour in my game. That and she dazes and disorients every enemy she hits while doing that amount of damage. Carnage is no problem as you want to group enemies up anyways for aoe effects like Carnage and spells.

Because it does not give you as much benefit as high might (damage), perception (accuracy!!!) + interrupt and intelligence (duration of buffs and cc area of effect of debuff and spells). And you cast delirious alacrity of motion on yourself anyways first thing in any big battle and later once you get spell mastery of it once every encounter. That being said Dex should not be negative. Perception is the most important Stat for wizard as you want to land that cc debuff on a tough target. At level 12 my wizards accuracy by default without buffs is sitting at 94. She did all the major cc in the game alpine dragon = petrified, radiant spore = petrified etc.

I also gave her silver flash now too and ryonas vambraces, as the one ability from the ryonas breastplate gives her immunity to a bunch of afflictions including blind.

The vambraces are good if you can spare them for pallegina 's they work with wotfs. A blunderbuss is also an option but I did not take it as I need her in the front line more than the back so I took vulnerable attack and not pen shot and use the marking arquebus from the bounty quest instead it is also good and best utilized when you just fire it once at the start of battle. And as I said I take everything with flame damage like amulet of summer solstice except if I'm the fights I want her to really tank more and have cloak of comfort on for extra defense, the sabre from the endless paths and scrolls of burst of summer flame. The chain armor you mentioned is not quite good as defensively it sucks (crush weak) very bad, and at range if you just keep pallegina in the back the recovery penalty is horrendous. I'd rather use rebels call at that point on her or a robe. For the front line she is definitely better in ryonas breastplate if you can give it to her. Her defensive stats are quite good later in the game so it is a waste not to put her in the front line though to shield off the squishees.

Aspirant's mark is a better investment on many classes and very good at 1 per encounter. but yeah, baby sneak attack on a off tank barb or dps fighter with a two hander? Very good (as long someone else is debuffing the enemy) . On a caster? You\re better off maxing out certain elemental damage spells and taking the appropriate talents like scion of flame and rime etc.

true that and it is worth trying, but atm pallegina for all her offensive tools with this build is the character with the best defensive rating in my current party thanks to palladin passives and outworn buckler and cloak of comfort if need be . so yeah she is kinda my primary tank (her plus Zahua actually) now so I need her with a shield most of the time. and while the priest is the primary heal and buffer in my party currently she serves as a backup should the priest become paralyzed etc. So she is my backup healer and since I am playing on potd ironman I sort of want her with a shield most of the time to provide security in case the priest fails. But as long as everything is running smoothly she can buff, debuff and launch fireballs and swing at things with her sabre.

It is a talent you can select ONLY if you choose SWORN ENEMY as one of her abilities since it upgrades SWORN ENEMY much like instense flames upgrades flames of devotion. It modifies sworn enemy in that whenever Pallgina uses it she shoots 5 projectiles each with 10dr bypass which deal 13-20 burn damage each *so good with scion of flame) and they have +20 accuracy just like FoD. Sworn enemy is a very good talent btw, it means you can win any tough boss dragon fight basically because there is no save against it. You just have Pallegina sworn enemy a dragon, then she has +15 accuracy against it the whole fight, with a high lore, which I recommend, she can then use any scroll you want (confusion or paralysis) against the boss or dragon and will most like hit it there is at least one active debuff on the dragon.

So I am really digging this more offensive minded setup for Pallegina. I balanced her Item distribution abilities and talents that she is very good in a lot of areas and has LOTS of per encounter abilities which are nice and is very good at against both mob groups and tough single targets. *granted I also run an additional skaen priest in the party most of the time so he and she sort of mix ^ mash and balance out the healing and buffing needs of the party and can switch offence + defense to boot as skaen priests are very good on offense as well, but with the priest I do not need to give healing talents to Pallegina and instead can bolster her offensive prowess. talents. *at lvl 12 currently intense flames weapon and shield style scion of flame aspirant's mark vulnerable attack wrath of the five suns (or vielo vidorio) note: if you take vielo vidorio do so right at the start as your first or second talent, its great for the whole party. I personally had it for most of the game but now respeced for wrath of the five suns since I want to concentrate her fire powess, and since at this point the characters who need haste can generate it themselves.. items: neck: amulet of the summer solstice grants sunbeam 3 per rest (normal), cloak of comfort (equip it in really tough battles for extra defense) armor: ryonas breastplate rings: deflection + protection gloves: bracers of all consuming rage belt: girdle of the driving wave (grants knockdown 1 per encounter) weapon 1 : the best arquebus you can get (for FoD opening shot) weapon 2 : the flames of fair rhian + outworn buckler (both made suberb if possible) 3 more fireballs per rest Once I get sacred immolation I will probably go drawn in spring or unlabored blade and drop the arquebus, the sabre with the 3 fireballs per rest (flames of fair rhian) is too good on this build. aspirants mark (lowers reflex) + 3 fireballs in a tough fight with the scion of flame talent is pretty awesome. In general I find this build for Pallegina is pretty awesome. She has GREAT! offensive tools for any situation 1 per encounter with these items and talents: debuff a group = aspirants mark and fireballs on their faces if they are a tough mob. boss? no problem = sworn enemy and it gets hit for massive damage with wrath of the five suns. annoying mage? = knockdown his ass. then she can get 3 sunbeam per rest and 3 fireball per rest, not too shabby. I also use scrolls of burst of summer flame in one item slot to should I need to burst damage a group of enemies. by choosing zealous focus and aspirants mark I can skip weapon focus since I am buffing the whole parties accuracy and debuffing the enemies deflection. Talent points sparred at more effective talents! More bang for the buck I would say.

This is a melee mage and perfect addition to any party. https://forums.obsidian.net/topic/84874-build-guide-the-royal-court-battlemage-wizard/?do=findComment&comment=1783446 If you want to make the mage even more pure melee go directly for vulnerable attack / and Savage attack and skip the blast talents. Savage attack is a no brainer given eldrige aim and the high accuracy of rapiers or daggers. Forge master gloves and firebrand is also very good. But if you want the mage to be more tanky go weapon and small shield although I'd argue the weapon and shield off tank role is handled better by a retaliation cipher or the slomo burn chanter. Wizard is just too good offensively. Alacrity +5 fireballs in your face in 10 seconds followed by stun lock interrupt on the mob boss leader.

Hmm that certainly can be good if you dual wield unlabored blade (fire bug scion of flame synergy) and drawn in spring plus combusting wounds. I would also suggest getting rotfinger gloves then for touch of rot (more dot stacking) - and as an item ability you can use it even while c martial prowess is active. Daggers also fall under weapon focus noble anyways as rappiers daggers and rods are all in this weapon group. PS: I personally now use mosquito + spell tongue on this mage but the dagger approach is valid to. I wonder if you will hit fast enough with the daggers to chain interrupt as their interrupt are quite short (mosquito on the other hand is a fast weapon with a ridiculous..75 s interrupt.

I balanced out manaha (classic barb with high might and int average Dex and perception) now for damage, cc and survivability. Main hand strike hard durganized (disoriented on hit) , off hand edge of reason for endurance steal on damage done (purgatory would work too but it isn't superior but exceptional by default), glittering gauntlets for daze on hit, binding rope because as a barb she will be hit regardless. I emphasize afflictions which cannot be resisted (disoriented, dazed, stuck) - yeah she is a very good debilitator and damager now. Sure a barb can do even more damage with BotEP or tidefall but for the overall needs of the party and usefulness this is quite nice.

It's per weapon the crit chance is calculated separately per weapon (the crit chance is calculated when you land a hit with that specific weapon with the durgan enchantment, not any weapon).

That is kind of my experience with this character right now at level 11 (don't have hardened veil yet). Basically initially first half of the fight through ranged cc at the enemy to help your traditional front liners and once that is managed a bit and you are in a challenging battle use your self buffs to transform yourself into a dual wielding interrupting whirlwind and go directly for elite enemy on the field (who most likely is buffed so your spelltongue will be put to great use). You play a bit like a rogue though in melee as long as you are dual wielding or using a summoned weapon, but you have have with buffs way more defenses than a rogue. you can buff yourself to be stronger on average than any enemy except maybe a dragon. A more tanky wizard has the weapon shield setup but I find wizard too good an offensive class or more precisely a class where you would give up too much offense potential if you want to "tank" - a monk or a chanter is better suited for that tank role really because chanter has passive aoe chants and can be slow and a monk gains strength from taking damage which any tank will anyhow. That said this is a very durable class if played right. She (this character in the wizard template) has only been knocked 3 times in my game and I know at least once it happened because a dominated party member insta gibbed her when I was preoccupied elsewhere. Another time was a trap but I am not sure, anyways that's very low compared to my parties barb which has been koed like over 20 times now.

I find even before time parasite at about level 11 now a ranged cipher is still best with rain of gadogh field in hand. That 1,15 x 1,20 speed coefficient from that weapon durganized and a higher base damage from war bows (I do about 50-60 damage on one shot, 70-80 on a crit) means you attack fast plus your weapon has a big enough damage pop to generate tons of focus which is after all the most important thing for a cipher. Basically I am back to the situation where I can spam amplified wave again if I choose to (not that I would all the time because of buffs to other spells and prone enemy immunity - in certain battles raw damage from silent scream etc is really better plus it stuns). AND that is without having draining whip, just with that unconquerable amulet.

Ah OK I will give binding rope to someone else (maybe Maneha) and use a heal or bunting belt instead. But fast attack speed + 30% crit hit conversation on aattuuk and monk torments reach and flagrant path = lots of enemies constantly weakened.

I dig playing with the newer companions especially because of new content and their quests in the expansion. Anyways I managed now to turn Maneha into a reliable crit machine with brute force and tidefall. I might just respec her into sabres now for the extra crit damage. How: give zahua lavender crown and binding rope, take enervating blows, he punches with his right fist (great crush dps especially with blood testament and boots of ff) but uses durgan refined aattuuk (can be superb if you want from extra sky dragon eye in cragholdt) so that's 30% hits to crit conversion. Add a priest with painful interdiction. Threatening presence + glittering gloves on Maneha. Lots of weakened enemies every fight, lots of crits. My backrow cipher loves that too.

That's not surprising. In the end rogue has no aoe damage and classes with aoe damage (monk, barbarian, cipher etc) will still out damage a rogue over the course of the game. Rogue is really a specialized mage killer, slap boots of haste on him and send him into the mage back ranks of the enemy to decimate them. Thats what he is good at.

For armor probably coat of ill payment, white crest suite, vengiatta rugia. Those are the best armors in the game with angio gambeson and blaidh Golan as honorable mentions. Vengiatta is already superb though so in general it's best to enchant something that is not even superb yet. For weapons I imagine a legendary lead spitter could one shot lots of things on certain builds.

Difficulty: PotD Best Team Role: Crowd Control and off-tank dps Team based or solo (if emphasizing defensive talents first) This is more a party based guide and I have played this build in a party but it seems strong enough to solo with a few adjustments. Introduction: The wizard is one of the most versatile classes in PoE, being able to adjust himself or herself on the fly to do whatever is necessary to help the whole party succeed in any hairy battle situation. This guide is aimed at suggesting a wizard build strong across multiple functions (cc, disruption, interrupt, one-on-one melee duelist), no glass noodle, a team-player first and foremost, yet a badass who can in a cinch pull victory from the jaws of defeat should the team be almost overwhelmed, and do so with style to boot . Some of these suggestions for talents etc in this guide will no doubt be familiar to veteran wizard players, and I also have to say my choices for equipment, armor etc, have been done to fit the overall concept of the archetypal in my mind battlemage), to match the overall package. But without further ado, enter the Royal Court Wizard, veritable jack of many trades, and perhaps even master of one or two. Race: Human, it is good for the might bonus and the overall theme of this character is to be best when the battle gets tough so the racial bonus is good. A case can be made for Fire or Moon Godlike but they have to helm and I find that is a bigger con to the needs of this purticular character than their racials. Coastal aumaua can be considered too but that would be a "Court Djinn" Background: Living Lands (Might bonus), noble or mercenary. Stats: Might: Max it Con: 6 Dex: flat Perception: max it Int: Max it (but you want to buff might and perception more) Resolve: 6 Talents: ! = principle to the concept of the class, R = Very Highly recommended O= Optional but good choices In general order I would take them: Arcane Veil ! your bread and butter defensive ability, essential first line of defense especially as you will be spending a lot of time in melee Blast R (team) / Fast Runner ! (if solo) blast - mainly taken for the extra interrupts and any on hit effects from scepter rods and wands Penetrating Blast R/O (team) / Hardened Veil ! if solo! boosting damage a bit from blast does not hurt and your high might takes care of the rest, at range you will cast cc spells mainly anyways and do actual weapon damage in melee anyways this is the most optional of the early talents. Interrupting Blows ! essential talent as you want to be a great interrupter it helps your team when you attack at range and you when you zone in on an enemy in melee, it also comes at the time you get lvl 3 spells and delirious alactricy of motion. Scion of Flame / or Secrets of Rime ! (Choose one at least - Flame if you go more melee, rime if you stick in the back ranks more) fire is good in melee because of firebrand + flame shield, fan of flames and the occasional fireball opener. ice is good because the strongest damage + cc spells at range are ice. all the ninigauth spells basically. Vulnerable Attack R at this point you can start to make your melee attack more devastating if you like those rapiers which you should Two Weapon Style R greater attack speed when dual wielding rapiers Weapon Focus: Noble R you can get accuracy from other sources like eldridge aim, it is nice but I personally take: Hardened Veil O basically means you will only be grazed even at higher levels when this is active which combined from the dr on your armor is quite sufficient Savage Attack O Apprentice Sneak Attack O / Savage attack and Baby SA can be skipped if going more tanky you can take superior deflection I guess and cautious attack. I prefer the "melee" variant in first line here - the concept of this build is to be very competent mob cc, but also be able to dual against the mob boss leaders. Spell Mastery: Level 1: Slicken (cc this good too good to pass up) Level 2: Combusting wounds Level 3: DAoM is probably best although if you think you can just use potions of it you can maybe take Fireball Level 4: Flame Shield or Pull of Eora or Ninigauth Shadowflame (especially on distant rime build) Equipment: Helm: Azalin's Helm Armor: Osric's Family Breastplate (Durgan refined) Gloves: Pilferer's Grip or Forgemaster's Gloves, Ryonas Vambraces Boots: Glanfathan Stalking Boots Rings: Ring of searing flames, ring of deflection, ring of protection are all good generally Belt: Girdle of mortal protection Neck: Liliths Shawl Note this is mid game: I am sure there are some more awesome items before or after depending on how you progress through the game. You want to boost perception, might, and Int. Weapon 1: Gyrd Haewanes Stenas (you get it early, it's great, has super accuracy so what's not to like, and looks good and "fits" (domination chance) on the character!) Weapon 2: Vierina's Leaves + Spelltongue or Sword of Dyonisos + Spelltongue. They are already great without durgan I am sure they would be awesome with it. But it is not necessary to durganize them. potions: regen, llengrath's di or bulwark depending on fight type, spirit shield or paralysis scrolls, figurine How she behaves on the battlefield: generally starts in the back ranks and cc's / disrupts enemies and conserves some of her strength, but if the situation calls for she buffs herself up with alactricy, flame shield, vital essence, arcane veil, martial prowess, switches to dual rapiers and stun interrupts a troublesome target like a battery siren or a brood mother. She dueled against battery sirens and brood mothers for me just fine that way on Potd and I would not consider my skills good enough for solo at this game yet. I am sure in expert hands she would be even more fearsome. I like the breast plate because it fits the "noble court wizard" theme. With pilferer's grip and durgan it is as light as cloth (15% recovery penalty) hella sturdy, has second chance even, and looks awesome. You can have zero recovery with robes but this is not really a "robe" wizard in my mind. Current Grimoire: Totally Badass: Edit: looking at the grimoire again, I will replace kolakoth minor blights with pull of eora though both are really but this wizard just goes into melee should spells be low 85% of the time so kolakoth mb is not really needed.

Cautious attack+superior deflection would net you 13 deflection. Not quite as much as a shield, even small one (around 20) but quite solid. Add a +9 deflection ring and the Cloak of comfort and 5 to all defenses and you are at +27 deflection. Any resolve points over 10 add to that. That is how I have the devil of coruc set up, but with dual battle axes. Also two weapon fighting cancels out the speed penalty from cautious attack. Attributes are might: 12-14 range not less than 10, more is good but not critical. Constitution: 12ish Dex : max it if possible Perception: 15 is good, but not less than 10. I would rather put spare points into might. Int : 6-7 Resolve: 12 should suffice. 13 if you put int at 6. Take shadowing beyond for some get out of jail free moments.

Put on that hide armor that lowers stun time by 50%. Bring a priest. Use a rogue to do the quest points like picking up the key in the mines and the eye in the Forge and then just go into shadowing beyond and sneak back to the rest of your party. I do the later as I find those fights tedious.

The way I have my dual wield skaen priest survive and thrive in the front lines now is by putting pallegina's defiant breastplate on him and giving him shod in faith (he is ideally positioned for it since he is always just between my front line and back ranks usually), blesca's labor and olgreich stiletto or whatever it's called but you get it in od nua level 1. Both weapons have draining property. As for helm probably he carries many scars helm.