Arc Reactor: a solo Reaper capable, First Life, no raid gear, pure artificer caster with good DCs and DPS.
- Thread starter TUF_rpg
- Start date
Lazuli
Well-known member
I wouldn't have spent shards, the bug is SSG's fault, not yours. I would have continued with the feat until they fixed the bug.
But now it seems clear what the feat code is, given that it gives +3 DC and you have two spell focus feats.
This (as a primal avatar for staying power and shared mantle with gold seals, since dragonbreath is not what it was when you wrote this) has been my first caster to stay in legendary, thank you.
Colour spray was excellent up to 30 when Shared Mantle started carrying, but it's proven very hard to make colour spray useful in legendary while trying to get all the more core things geared up.
For 34, would you suggest i take spell specialty: Illusion (confirmed not a bug, now) and keep working to get it useful?
After realising how hard raid enemies hit I was thinking of giving up on it, moving those enhancement points to Mastermaker and taking Titan's blood.
Colour spray was excellent up to 30 when Shared Mantle started carrying, but it's proven very hard to make colour spray useful in legendary while trying to get all the more core things geared up.
For 34, would you suggest i take spell specialty: Illusion (confirmed not a bug, now) and keep working to get it useful?
After realising how hard raid enemies hit I was thinking of giving up on it, moving those enhancement points to Mastermaker and taking Titan's blood.
TUF_rpg
Well-known member
I'm glad you are enjoying it. I have tweaked it a bit towards what you are talking about. Primal is really good after all. I have moved away from dragon's breath too and use the Macrotech epic strike. the stun effect it gets is really strong. It is worth noting Primal Avatar cores are giving +10 universal spell power instead of +5 as listed.
just to show this
i'm opening on groups with the machrotech stun, aoeing everything down while helpless, then using the storm strike on whatever dangerous thing is left, it's felt like the first time having two different strikes was critical. and using the sonic hammer so i have all the elemental procs going.
tweaked it where? (btw your link to the google docs version on your youtube video now goes to an alchemist bomber)
TUF_rpg
Well-known member
that's odd, try this: https://docs.google.com/document/d/...ouid=113421998337452461853&rtpof=true&sd=true
TUF_rpg
Well-known member
fantastic to know, thank you.
Kodewraith
Well-known member
I just ran a Gnome version of this to 20 (eventually to cap). I took a similar feat loadout, but ditched Adamantine Body / Insightful reflexes and picked up Construct Essence / Imp CE at 12. The build was slowish un til you pick up the Blast Rod SLA, then accelerates more with the lightning bolt SLA. Arc Welder is your friend. The build desperately needs Quicken on all the time. I also ditched metal toughness and picked up Accelerate and Enlarge
A couple thoughts (on arti caster in general):
A couple thoughts (on arti caster in general):
- The timing of casting and using your Xbow are weird. The repeater shoots then you're locked into the reload animation for a seconds or two until you can cast. Quick Draw doesn't help. So it has a much wonkier dynamic to the timing than a pure caster or a pure bow build. Hitting the xbow only at the end of a pull to finish off a mob seems to work the best.
- You're completely dependent on your rune arm for immunity stripping. The _Arcano_ tree really needs RuneArm improvements. Also your selection of runearms is really critical. Short range AoE runearms really need to be able to break barrels.
- This build just *destroys* content from 12-20. You have tons and tons of buttons to hit fully SLAed.
- The build takes a huge nose dive at 20 because you have tons of things that are caster level capped.
TUF_rpg
Well-known member
you were supposed to stop using that crossbow at level 3 when you got your lightning sphere and the SLA. seriously unequip the crossy and carry a caster stick. this is a caster build, not hybrid caster / shooter. This build destroys dungeons from level 3 all the way to the top. lightning sphere dazes everything then the next LS wakes them up only to re-daze them effectively stun-locking the room. I know LS has a wonky travel arc but run in and get them in medium to close range and you'll be fine. yes the power level dips a bit from 20 to 23 but at level 24 when you pick up Master of Artifice you are back with a vengeance. and to be honest level 20-23 isn't even that bad. between Tac Det, Tonquin's Hammer, and your runearm you don't even need any other spells to wreck low epic dungeons. you don't need and should not be using a crossbow.
most common mistakes people make with caster arti:
1: Using a crossbow. seriously, put down the crossbow and trust your spells, they rock. sure ok, carry it on you in case you need to shoot a lever or run into a lich or something immune to electricity before level 12. but at all other times it belongs in your backpack and not in your hands.
2: Feat selection. People are always tempted to take the meta magic feats early to get that extra damage on the SLAs but don't, that will leave you sad later on. seriously while there are a few flexible ones like choice of adamantine body or insightful reflexes and mental toughness (which is ALWAYS optional) you just cannot afford to not follow a plan on when to take the feats because then you end up with wasted slots. you NEED greater illusion and greater evocation in heroics to set up epic illusion and evocation specialty (followed by illusion specialty and epic evocation in legendaries) for maximum DCs (ok if you have tons of past lives this is easier but for a first lifer or a toon that doesn't have 1 wiz and 3 sorc past lives do it this way) and never ever take a ranged feat on a caster build, not point blank at level 1 not any of them ever you gotta kick the repeater addiction my brothers and sisters in Lightning.
3: use the right rune arms: explosive shot runearms like Strinatti's, Glass Cannon, and Ol' Iron Sides are secondary arms and only used for breakables and when you need to strip immunity from large groups. otherwise stick to the Prototype IV: Discharge system and its legendary version and wait for it to charge up, it's worth it. when you are leveling use strinatti from 5-12, you can switch to Ol' Ironsides at 7 if you want the small upgrade but it's no biggie (don't even worry about an arm before 5) from 13-17 use Arm of the Archons and at 18 you use Prototype IV until you get the legendary version at 32. that's it simple, easy. Prototype IV hits like a freight train. I have seen 30K - 50K hits in reaper with it.
4: USE ALL the electric spells and their SLAs. you should be rotating through regular and SLA versions of everything. start with lightning bolts at a distance then tac det, then Motes to give vulnerability, then blast rods and lightning spheres then back to tac det, motes blast etc, round and round you go a constant storm of fire force and lightning. hit the runearm instantly as soon as it hits charge tier 5. no timing worries there as it interrupts nothing.
my document above goes into detail for both warforged and fleshy life variants
if you didn't follow this build you didn't play this build. your caster arti suffered because you played it wrong. this build flies through the levels and has been a breeze in hard core seasons and mist stalker event, legendary reapers, raids, and everything even as a first lifer. sorry you didn't enjoy it but every complaint you have about the build came from your own mistakes.
danzig138
Well-known member
Huh. I'm a big fan of the arty. One of my earliest characters (that I still play) was a repeater rogue/fighter Kensai - I was basically making an arty before they added the class, but it never occurred to me to try playing one as a straight up caster, so I think when one of my artificers comes up for TR soon I'm going to give this a shot. Looking forward to the experience.