Question: TCS, Wizards, Second Chance, and other items

[Omnicron]

Hi

 

Doing a very successful run with a TCS Wizard. Level 6 now, some close calls but Wizard had a great ability to bounce back with all his draining spells and once enemies are focused on your summons you are good. Loving the 1st level Staff and the Hardened Veil. 

I have been using Eder's Armour and his second chance has saved me once so I would like to keep that on me. I have access to ring of Wonders now, so I can either swap out my armour or take two better rings. Feeling like I will keep the armour and upgrade it since you cant upgrade rings and I feel I have a good casting speed at the moment. 

What has been nice is that I am not as reliant on weapons as my other attempts since I can summon really good ones. 

 

What do people think about this? Any suggestions for a wizard run item layout? I will definitely get whisper of treason helm.

 

I have done most of the quests in defiance bay, doing Sewers and Wael quest still then only Heritage Hill and some Ondra's gift quests remain Then the hard part starts... Not sure about my approach to the Dyrford quests, also worried a bit about Sanatorium.  Other two main quests should be ok since I have lot of room to setup my fights. 

 

Edited May 12, 2015 by Omnicron

[MadDemiurg]

Wiz was pretty good for solo in 1.04 and is even better in 1.05.

 

For item layout buy rotfinger gloves - they give nice extra damage and saves debuff for tough targets. Pick both wizardry rings - I've been using them mostly, but for some fights it makes sense to swap for defensive ones. Boots of speed are good if you manage to find them. There's a superb second chance robe, but you'll need to do most of the bounties to get it - not smth I'd try on TCS. 

[MalleGT]

Regarding second chance, Eder's armor has always been reliable for me but the one time I have tried ring of wonders, it failed to activate, despite having summons up and almost cost the run. So definitely stick with the armor if you want to keep rocking second chance. Ring of wizardry from the Copperlane merchant is a decent pick up, especially paired with a more defensive ring. Finreah's Grace is a staple cloak for most classes, obtainable from the Doemenel merchant, the +3 dex is hard to pass up on. The might and con bracelet from the Dozens merchant is also a good choice IF you have not found rare drops like the +5 accuracy gloves.

 

Sanitarium should not pose a problem if you manage to get the Shade figurine before it, instead, I would advice caution with the Heritage Hill tower, as the floors might get locked into combat until all enemies have been wiped out, preventing resting or exiting the area. Since the darguls can take quite a beating, remember to enter each floor while properly rested.

 

The wizard really kicks off once you gain access to the Spirit Lance, that weapon makes a barbarian look like a kitten. So look forward to that!

[Omnicron]

Thanks for the replies

 

I have the Shades, one of my 1st deaths was trying to take on the bears and took the wrong approach. Just to be safe I only went back once I had shades and wood beetles  

 

I just did heritage hill on my Pacifist run, so I know how to do the 1st floor and which enemies trigger the bug you mentioned. So feel ok about that

So I'll stick with Eder's armour for now and pick up the recommended items   Looking forward to my lance if I make it that far

[knownastherat]

Wizard can utilize quite few itmes via Duplicate so that is one approach. Though with enough spells, rings/talents, its not as appealing.

[Omnicron]

Wizard can utilize quite few itmes via Duplicate so that is one approach. Though with enough spells, rings/talents, its not as appealing.

 

I have never used that spell. Please explain how it works and whether it is recommended for solo. I thought it was like BG2 Simulacrum which was pretty OP.

 

I just hit level 7 after Parables of Wael and Sewers. Looked though the level 4 spells and I cannot tell which would help me most  Wall of Fire, Minor Arcane Reflection, Iron Skin, Minoletta's Concussive Missiles, and Essential Phantom all look useful. I would probably go for wall of Flame and Arcane Reflection? (Wizards who can fire past my bottlenecked summons)

 

Also, does anyone know whether the speed of Kalakoth's Minor Blights is determined by your weapon? (it looks like it enchants my wand, is the splash damage part of the spell or because of the wand?)

Edited May 12, 2015 by Omnicron

[knownastherat]

[info] Essential Phantom + Spellbind Items - https://forums.obsidian.net/topic/78361-info-essential-phantom-spellbind-items/

 

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Project Image was good enough. The biggest problem was counter with some kind of detect invisibility/dispel but it could be taken care of by cloak or buff iirc. Simulacrum was level higher and on that level there were better picks at least for Sorcerer. Wisdom 18 ~ Wish .. instant rest .. summon deva whatever .. OP. Everything was OP there.

[Omnicron]

[info] Essential Phantom + Spellbind Items - https://forums.obsidian.net/topic/78361-info-essential-phantom-spellbind-items/

 

---

 

Project Image was good enough. The biggest problem was counter with some kind of detect invisibility/dispel but it could be taken care of by cloak or buff iirc. Simulacrum was level higher and on that level there were better picks at least for Sorcerer. Wisdom 18 ~ Wish .. instant rest .. summon deva whatever .. OP. Everything was OP there.

Nice, ok so my understanding is that it is a super high health version of you without your weapons and which cannot cast spells, but will have the spellbinds of your other items. I am guessing it can only be cast during battle, which means the item sharing can be a bit meh. But since it is a summon I am guessing it is really good for a solo run

 

I just want to be careful in my pics, not so sure how well I can do the forgotten and the spellbooks I need are there if I want to benefit, Otherwise I only get 3 pics. Wall of Flame has been proven to work well, but tempted now to go for Essential Phantom and Minor Arcane Reflection 

 

Edit: OK found this thread to help http://forums.obsidian.net/topic/78467-class-build-wizard-solo-potd/?hl=forgotten

 

EDit 2: Could not cast Essential Phantom in combat for some reason? Oh right casue I have other summons active

 

Edit 3: Just completed Heritage Hill. Wizard so strong. That was easy. Especially compared to my Cipher attempt

 

Edited May 12, 2015 by Omnicron

[Omnicron]

Level 10 Now. What level can I solo Searing Falls do people think?

Edited May 13, 2015 by Omnicron

[Omnicron]

 

The wizard really kicks off once you gain access to the Spirit Lance, that weapon makes a barbarian look like a kitten. So look forward to that!

 

 

No kidding! Went to Eothas temple to test whether Shades can hit me with Hardened Veil in preparation for the lighthouse  (they cant at level 10 ) and I used the Lance. I was hitting the shade behind me O_o Talk about splash damage, sheesh

 

Few quests left. Can I safely solo Searing falls at level 10?

Edited May 13, 2015 by Omnicron

[MadDemiurg]

Shades and phantoms can't hit you even at level 4 if you do everything right. You can clear the searing falls, but stock up on prayer against fear scrolls and don't try to clear everything, it's not worth it. You only need to do the quest and clear the path to Pearlwood Bluff if you haven't already. Use rotfinger gloves on the big dragon to ease CC and make sure you rest before that fight. +Int rest bonuses might come in handy too.

[Omnicron]

Searing Falls done Thanks for the tips. Was easy actually. Adra beetle in the Narrow aisle is enough tanky, and then just spammed confusion and malignant cloud. Big Dragon was alone by the end of that and finished him off with a Spirit Lance with my Adra Beetle still up

Edited May 13, 2015 by Omnicron

[MadDemiurg]

All fights are quite easy for wiz once you figure out the right approach. The only way to fail is to go in without a plan. Batman wiz  .

[Omnicron]

All fights are quite easy for wiz once you figure out the right approach. The only way to fail is to go in without a plan. Batman wiz  .

 Lolz, especially if you have a great community giving you tips  

 

I'll probably finish tonight and will post it here. [Edit: Nope, too many technical issues with game and PC and had a late night out. Tomorrow then]

 

Last question. Any suggestion for 6th Talent?

 

1. Arcane Veil

2. Hardened Veil

3. Deep Pockets

4. Fast Runner

5. Cautious Attack (a bit of a waste tbh)

6. ???

 

Oh and should I bother with weapons, still using fine wand from Act I and, well you know, Spirit Lance!

Edited May 13, 2015 by Omnicron

[MadDemiurg]

I like W&S style for massive deflection and reflex boost when you are in "caster mode". Cautious attack does not stack with displaced image, so I wouldn't pick it.

 

Extra spell slot, corrosive/frost/fire extra damage or even WF: Soldier for extra pike accuracy for the last one.

[Omnicron]

I like W&S style for massive deflection and reflex boost when you are in "caster mode". Cautious attack does not stack with displaced image, so I wouldn't pick it.

 

Extra spell slot, corrosive/frost/fire extra damage or even WF: Soldier for extra pike accuracy for the last one.

 LOL, so then it is a complete waste. Oh well I picked it already. Ok, will thank about where my damage in Thaos fight will come from and pick one of the last talents, unless you highly recommend the reflex bonus from ES Style

[saltamon]

Hi

 

Doing a very successful run with a TCS Wizard. Level 6 now, some close calls but Wizard had a great ability to bounce back with all his draining spells and once enemies are focused on your summons you are good. Loving the 1st level Staff and the Hardened Veil. 

 

I have been using Eder's Armour and his second chance has saved me once so I would like to keep that on me. I have access to ring of Wonders now, so I can either swap out my armour or take two better rings. Feeling like I will keep the armour and upgrade it since you cant upgrade rings and I feel I have a good casting speed at the moment. 

 

What has been nice is that I am not as reliant on weapons as my other attempts since I can summon really good ones. 

 

What do people think about this? Any suggestions for a wizard run item layout? I will definitely get whisper of treason helm.

 

I have done most of the quests in defiance bay, doing Sewers and Wael quest still then only Heritage Hill and some Ondra's gift quests remain Then the hard part starts... Not sure about my approach to the Dyrford quests, also worried a bit about Sanatorium.  Other two main quests should be ok since I have lot of room to setup my fights. 

 

 

I´ll try a wizard build too. May you share your character stats? . Tx in advance

[Omnicron]

I´ll try a wizard build too. May you share your character stats? . Tx in advance

 

 

 

Pale Elf: Living Lands Scientist 

19 Might

13 Con

16 Dex

6  Per

18 Int 

6 Res

 

Dont ask me how I came to these numbers, just played around with what I felt comfortable with and decided I would rely on Spells and Arcane Veil to boosts concentration and deflection, and it has worked really well. Edit: although lately I could use some more concentration... but my cast speed is vital and so are my other stats. Just have to work around it I guess, and try and keep my distance where I can. Has not caused me to lose any encounters, but be mindful that if you are being targeted and being hit you need to move and summon or CC because you cant afford constant interrupts. 

 

Spells

Slicken, Chill Fog, Parasitic Staff, and Wizard Double & Kill Aloth for his Grimoire (http://pillarsofeternity.gamepedia.com/Aloth%27s_Grimoire) The staff is particularly strong, especially once you get the figurine. Feel free to rely on it

 

Take Arcanse Veil and Hardened Veil asap

 

Lmk if you have more questions

Edited May 13, 2015 by Omnicron

[knownastherat]

The only thing I would question is Con and I played my first Wizard with almost exactly same stats. Better bump up Res imo.

[Omnicron]

Well here I am at last. Leveled up to 12 in the dungeon casue I ran out of sidequests. Overall an easy run, but had some issues with bugs which I will report on after the fight. Have go to a meeting nwo, so will do this in about an hour

 

Lmk if you have any advice, gonna run with boots and sugar and try and pull Thaos away and deal with his two henchmen and then lure him to trap. Got 3 more in my spellbook if it misses

 

[Omnicron]

Ok I died, or rather this is the first time I had to quit to save my character, so even if I win it is no longer a legit run.

 

I have repeated the fight more than 10 times and it is just impossible, I have to landed a singe Gaze of the Adragon on Thaos, the trap only works 1/3 of the time, and I cannot separate him from the Judge, and I have a 100% chance to be dominated at the start of the fight. FML

[MadDemiurg]

For splitting them up just follow one of the million vids available out there.

 

Thaos fort is not unbreachable, at least with spells, but he uses strong buffs on himself and statues so it's better to wait them out. Dunno about traps after 1.05 nerf. Remember to use eldritch aim and rotfinger gloves. His freeze DT is low, so he's also vulnerable to bitter morning/blast of frost and it's possible to kill him without disabling using these.

 

It's possible to do this fight with more unconventional tactics but I'd rather show it than just describe.

Edited May 14, 2015 by MadDemiurg

[knownastherat]

Ceranai would probably tell you that you cannot do this without planning This for exmple: https://forums.obsidian.net/topic/79251-fully-recorded-paladin-triple-crown-solo/ does not work anymore?

[Omnicron]

Ok finally killed him, I am taking the achievement even knowing that it was not 100% legit. A bit dissapointed at the end, but knowing that the rest of the run was rather easy I would rather do this than replay the whole game just to satisfy my desire, so I can do other things with my life.... but I must say that these are true words indeed: 

 

MalleGT, on 10 May 2015 - 06:02 AM, said:

 Thaos is the only fight which really matters when thinking about levelling and gearing. It is the only unavoidable fight in which patience and caution will not compensate for a poor build, therefore it is crucial to pick talents and abilities with this in mind. Building a character with so called "quality of life talents/abilities" wont increase odds of a successful run, but will speed things up in the early/midgame. 

 

The run though all the acts is fairly trivial on TOI, there is an easy path to follow which all classes can do. The last fight is what it comes down to and that is most probably the true trial of TOI, whether you can endure 10+ hours repeatedly only to die at the boss once more

 

 

 

As you can see here, I do not have the "Zero Knockouts" achievement. That is thanks to Saints War Armour, allowed me to run away from some fights as enemies refocused my my summons. While it is not needed for the run, I just made a dumb move here when I ran into an unwanted mob which I knew I could not handle from the start and there and it helped me recover and run away. With a bit more experience I know now where I can and cannot sneak past. 

 

I had two recurring issues which forced me to Quit mid combat on several occasions:

 

The first one was a bug where I cannot interact with the world, my spells do not get consumed, cannot use figurines, and cannot hit the enemy, but they can hit me. Happened in Sewers vs a troll, in Sun and Shadow vs the shades, and in one of my Thaos attempts, and one other place I cannot remember. It seems related to Chill fog somehow, 3/6 times it happened it was right after casting it, the other 3 times was as a result of trying to summon another weapon with another summoned weapon equipped. Took me a while to understand the triggers

 

The second bug which caused me to have to quite "mid combat" was when battle would not end while I am miles away from combat, the issue is explained here http://forums.obsidian.net/topic/79465-infinite-fight-northweald-stelgaer/ and it also happened once in Sun and Shadow, there is a particular shade which triggers this and I did not know about him. In both cases I needed to rest and was legitimately out of combat as far as the enemies were concerned, just not the music. 

 

 

Other than that it was a legit TCS run, and I feel fine about everything I did except the Thaos fight, even though I did eventually beat him and I was getting better at it, I still do not think I could reproduce a victory. On some level I could run though the whole game again without fear using a wizard just to get to redo the last fight. Oh well, I really need to get to my work, so glad I got this run behind me. If I had to redo it I would keep in mind that Petrify is really hard to land on him even with finger of rot, and would compensate in my pics so i can try another approach. But in this build I was banking that 4 petrify effects would do the trick, and it eventually did, just cant rely on it for a legit run.

 

I agree with knownastherat btw on the stats, feel free to dump Per for Con, you get hit all the time anyway if your Veil is not up. Might as well get the extra health which would really help. 

Edited May 14, 2015 by Omnicron

[MalleGT]

Congratulations on a solid run and the honesty with how it played out. I agree 100% about Thaos being the true trial, though reaching him with a legit ToI is still a massive accomplishment because there are so many little things that could go wrong.  My druid run has been on hold for close to two weeks in Act 3 already, simply because I dread the final fight on a pure caster. I gave up on trying to use a caster wizard after dying to Thaos in 1.04, being pretty sure that a buff and combat centric wizard will have a consistently good chance against him, especially with the latest patch. Regarding the stats, I also agree that Per is probably the least valuable of the bunch and can easily be dumped for Con or even Dex.

 

The combat related bugs feel way more frequent to me. Ran into both bug types that you described, the last three times I have played. I think that quitting is completely warranted in those situations, though I whipped myself to restart the runs for the sake of a "clean" recording.  Anyways, good job and I enjoyed reading through the discussion here.

 

@knownastherat: The final fight was done in 1.05 so it should still work, unless you are referring to something else.