Just trying to get some ideas from people who might have actual experience! I can sort of muddle through on my own, but I do so love the voice of experience chiming in.
Trying to put together a new team, probably Arcane + Nature + Shadow. Idea is I abuse their specialty attacks For Great Magical Justice:
[item=Enfeeble][item=Envenom][item=Shroud]
Amplify to get extra magic damage going, Blind to nuke accuracy, and Poison because I like damage-over-time too much. Not quite a perfect element spread but it's pretty good for casual purposes-- not like I'll be fighting other players, hah-- and if I decide it's too hard to run I can swap the Nature dragon for a Wind.
I was thinking of making the entire team mages. At least one packing healing spells (2 might be nice); I'm not sure if I want a proper tank, because I tend to prefer having all three teammates on the offensive, although a mage tank is appealing. I'd definitely enjoy everyone being able to take advantage of Amplify.
[LIST=1]
[*]Are magic-resist enemies a sufficiently large problem that the entire team being magic-offensive would trip over them?
[*]Do I really need a tank or can I avoid it by making everyone a little bulky and bringing healing?
[*]If I DO make a mage tank, any stat suggestions?
[*]Are there currently any crippling bugs associated with Enfeeble/Envenom/Shroud?
[*]Does anyone who's tried this have words of experience to share?
[/LIST]
Just trying to get some ideas from people who might have actual experience! I can sort of muddle through on my own, but I do so love the voice of experience chiming in.
Trying to put together a new team, probably Arcane + Nature + Shadow. Idea is I abuse their specialty attacks For Great Magical Justice:
Enfeeble
Ability Stone
Summons an ominous runic circle beneath the enemy. Has a chance to apply Amplify. (Increases magical damage against the target.) May only be used by arcane dragons.
600
Required Level: 12
Envenom
Ability Stone
Creates a venomous pool of acid beneath the enemy. Has a chance to apply Poison. (The target takes periodic nature damage.) May only be used by nature dragons.
500
Required Level: 12
Shroud
Ability Stone
Envelops the enemy in a dark mist. Has a chance to apply Blind. (Decreases the target's accuracy.) May only be used by shadow dragons.
600
Required Level: 12
Amplify to get extra magic damage going, Blind to nuke accuracy, and Poison because I like damage-over-time too much. Not quite a perfect element spread but it's pretty good for casual purposes-- not like I'll be fighting other players, hah-- and if I decide it's too hard to run I can swap the Nature dragon for a Wind.
I was thinking of making the entire team mages. At least one packing healing spells (2 might be nice); I'm not sure if I want a proper tank, because I tend to prefer having all three teammates on the offensive, although a mage tank is appealing. I'd definitely enjoy everyone being able to take advantage of Amplify.
Are magic-resist enemies a sufficiently large problem that the entire team being magic-offensive would trip over them?
Do I really need a tank or can I avoid it by making everyone a little bulky and bringing healing?
If I DO make a mage tank, any stat suggestions?
Are there currently any crippling bugs associated with Enfeeble/Envenom/Shroud?
Does anyone who's tried this have words of experience to share?
I'm not the best player in Coliseum, but I thought I'd chip in my opinions anyway. :)
1. If you mean "does the elemental resistance make a difference" - yes, it will be like taking them down by inches. But there's no enemy that is impervious to magic and none that shows all that much bias towards high magical defense vs high physical defense.
2. You can avoid having a tank; I've gotten through well enough without one.
3. Couldn't answer that.
4. Nope, the only one not working is Enamor!
5. I've only tried with two out of the three being mages. Mostly the issue you may have is that to attack, your dragons will always have to "breathe" first and frequently. While they do that, they're getting hit and the enemy isn't taking damage. I'd suggest getting each of the the Discipline and Ambush (when it's working again) Battle Stones. Regeneration, Haste, and Concentration - I use them all and it's very effective. I'd split them between the Arcane and the Shadow, because the Nature will be busier keeping the enemy poisoned (it does wear off). So far, I like how your strategy sounds. I'll be interested to know how well it carries out!
I'm not the best player in Coliseum, but I thought I'd chip in my opinions anyway. :)
1. If you mean "does the elemental resistance make a difference" - yes, it will be like taking them down by inches. But there's no enemy that is impervious to magic and none that shows all that much bias towards high magical defense vs high physical defense.
2. You can avoid having a tank; I've gotten through well enough without one.
3. Couldn't answer that.
4. Nope, the only one not working is Enamor!
5. I've only tried with two out of the three being mages. Mostly the issue you may have is that to attack, your dragons will always have to "breathe" first and frequently. While they do that, they're getting hit and the enemy isn't taking damage. I'd suggest getting each of the the Discipline and Ambush (when it's working again) Battle Stones. Regeneration, Haste, and Concentration - I use them all and it's very effective. I'd split them between the Arcane and the Shadow, because the Nature will be busier keeping the enemy poisoned (it does wear off). So far, I like how your strategy sounds. I'll be interested to know how well it carries out!
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@JCStitches All of that's a big help, I can probably muddle through on my own from here. I'll let you know how it goes if I ever get off my butt to try it past the Training Grounds, hah. Thanks so much!
@JCStitches All of that's a big help, I can probably muddle through on my own from here. I'll let you know how it goes if I ever get off my butt to try it past the Training Grounds, hah. Thanks so much!
Are you talking PVP or PVE? I'm guessing PVE since you say you won't be fighting against other players.
I do not use a tank. I abandoned my tank dragon at because DPS was far too slow and battles took forever. I'm bringing along a Nature caster to compliment my Arcane caster and Arcane melee DPS.
When you don't have a tank, and you're down to 2 dragons (my 3rd spot is filled with a level-to-exalt or the Nature caster) your healer has to help DPS or you'll be there forever. The key (having used some Dissolutions figuring it out) is to spec your casters for quickness so they get lots of turns in and can Meditate frequently. Agility, ime, is worthless, because you won't crit nearly enough to get around your lack of quickness or raw DPS/HPS.
Stacking quickness & buffing with Rally makes a BIG difference in a caster's effectiveness. Also, instead of using Aid, I drop a Regenerate on each party member when the battle starts. Regenerate actually heals for more than Aid. Not good for burst damage but gives your healer a chance to DPS instead of having to constantly be using every 2nd turn to cast Aid. I frequently get through whole battles with just casting regenerate 1-2 times and letting the healer DPS the rest of the time.
You can get around the elemental resistance by having your casters keep concussive shot. The elemental resistance doesn't apply to your dragon, just the spell they're casting. Sure it's nicer to use the bigger spells but Concussive is a fully serviceable fall back.
Are you talking PVP or PVE? I'm guessing PVE since you say you won't be fighting against other players.
I do not use a tank. I abandoned my tank dragon at because DPS was far too slow and battles took forever. I'm bringing along a Nature caster to compliment my Arcane caster and Arcane melee DPS.
When you don't have a tank, and you're down to 2 dragons (my 3rd spot is filled with a level-to-exalt or the Nature caster) your healer has to help DPS or you'll be there forever. The key (having used some Dissolutions figuring it out) is to spec your casters for quickness so they get lots of turns in and can Meditate frequently. Agility, ime, is worthless, because you won't crit nearly enough to get around your lack of quickness or raw DPS/HPS.
Stacking quickness & buffing with Rally makes a BIG difference in a caster's effectiveness. Also, instead of using Aid, I drop a Regenerate on each party member when the battle starts. Regenerate actually heals for more than Aid. Not good for burst damage but gives your healer a chance to DPS instead of having to constantly be using every 2nd turn to cast Aid. I frequently get through whole battles with just casting regenerate 1-2 times and letting the healer DPS the rest of the time.
You can get around the elemental resistance by having your casters keep concussive shot. The elemental resistance doesn't apply to your dragon, just the spell they're casting. Sure it's nicer to use the bigger spells but Concussive is a fully serviceable fall back.
I'd be interested in hearing about your experiences, especially as you reach higher leveled areas~! I never have more than one magic user on any team, and they're always a healer with maybe one elemental magic attack, but if you have a good experience with this I may reconsider...
I'd be interested in hearing about your experiences, especially as you reach higher leveled areas~! I never have more than one magic user on any team, and they're always a healer with maybe one elemental magic attack, but if you have a good experience with this I may reconsider...
I'm not the OP but thanks for the tips, they will be very helpful~! :)
@Wobblegong I don't use any magic at all because it takes time. What I do is build a glass canon/sweeper set with scratch, shred and eliminate. I scratch until I can OHKO all the opponents on a low level or I scratch/shred for exp gain and equip three berserkers.
This build is by far the best for farming for exp/treasure and I've reached level 20 on my two dragons and 19 on the other (I'm in Boreal Forest). You won't really want to look at magic unless you are doing PVP as magic users take time to charge up as compared to instant eliminate OHKOs on low levels. When the EXP gain begins to plateau, you will find that the meditating is fairly tedious. ^^;;
I started out with magic users but my recommendation is DON'T. It's just not worth the time.
@Wobblegong I don't use any magic at all because it takes time. What I do is build a glass canon/sweeper set with scratch, shred and eliminate. I scratch until I can OHKO all the opponents on a low level or I scratch/shred for exp gain and equip three berserkers.
This build is by far the best for farming for exp/treasure and I've reached level 20 on my two dragons and 19 on the other (I'm in Boreal Forest). You won't really want to look at magic unless you are doing PVP as magic users take time to charge up as compared to instant eliminate OHKOs on low levels. When the EXP gain begins to plateau, you will find that the meditating is fairly tedious. ^^;;
I started out with magic users but my recommendation is DON'T. It's just not worth the time.
With my Healer/melee DPS I was able to get into Harpy's at level 19/18, just a 2 dragon team (the 3rd dragon is always some useless lowbie just there to leech XP). My melee DPS had Eliminate for a time but I found it too unreliable and I died too often (ruining the win streak bonus) I replaced it with Rally.
I stand by my earlier statement that Quickness is the way to go with a caster. The key to using a caster effectively is getting them as many turns as possible.
With my Healer/melee DPS I was able to get into Harpy's at level 19/18, just a 2 dragon team (the 3rd dragon is always some useless lowbie just there to leech XP). My melee DPS had Eliminate for a time but I found it too unreliable and I died too often (ruining the win streak bonus) I replaced it with Rally.
I stand by my earlier statement that Quickness is the way to go with a caster. The key to using a caster effectively is getting them as many turns as possible.
