Regen Time / Duration : The good balance

[Nihilith 0]

Hi there

 

Here's just my 2 cents about a sentence we see in every guide : "Keep regen time just below duration". This sentence is right for CAs that last in time. But how low must we keep regen below duration...

 

Here is a simple but nice formula to get it right

 

Take the duration of the CA. Example 120 seconds for Heroic Courage.

Now take a chronometer, and play your toon (here, a glad) for 2 minutes (the duration of HC, I'm sure everybody got it) in the gob valley (silver creek), trying to fight as much as possible. During these 2 minutes, count how many times you use each "instant" CAs, like Attack, HH, or even FotG, even if it winds up. In fact, I call "instant" CAs, every CA or spell with a regen time below 2-3 seconds, bread and butter CAs, that is.

Ok you manages to count these up without getting smashed to death by a minotaur as you were looking at the clock ?

Nice. Say you've used FotG 10 times and Attack 30 times.

now here is the formula :

 

Fotg regen Time = 1 second

 

Attack regen time = 0.5 seconds

 

Fotg Regen Time * 10 + Attack Regen Time * 30 = 1 * 10 + 0.5 * 30 = 10 + 15 = 25 seconds of your time where HC regen stops (in fact, its timer drop of 1 seconds in the case of FotG for a duration of 1 sec (time to regen Fotg), so it's like it stopped for 1 second)

 

So your regen time for HC must be some seconds (I usually take 5) below 95 seconds (120 - 25), that is 90 sec of regen. This way, you're sure you'll never run out of courage, lol.

 

This works for every boosting spell like GM for BM, RBOL for the seraphim, or CotA for WE if you use it with Thorn Bush for example.

 

Hope this will help some of us, maybe the beginners, as the others one already know that.

 

 

PS : English is not my language. sorry if misunderstood

[Schot 415]

Excellent tip Nihilith. I think this is very valuable information. To anyone who has a strategy that includes the constant use of a CA like Ghost Meadow or Heroic Courage, buffs as I like to call them, this will prove most useful. No one with this kind of strategy can risk waiting for a buff to regenerate. Especially in the middle of battle. Very well written Nihilith. I understood you explanation perfectly.

[gial 2]

Yes, excellent and well thought out. It seems many do not consider the regen of other Combat Arts in their calculations. A must for all "buffer"s

[Nihilith 0]

I just want to add a comment : This explanation is right for CAs on the same timer. No need to calculate for a dwarf who uses WarCry (green) and Flame Thrower (Blue), but useful for Flame Thrower and Greed (both blue). Anyway can a dwarf play without greed on ?

[Csaszar 2]

Hi

 

You mean playing a char without the increased chance to find good stuff? Hehe every other chars are played so...

 

But the answer is ... YES! The Dwarf are though little fellows great to play with or withot Greed.

 

ps.:

 

Consider playing without Greed as a constant defense bonus

[Nihilith 0]

Sure Csaszar

 

I don't play as a dwarf often. I gave it a try and I must admit that he's a good char, really good char. His biggest advantage, when playing him the "greedy techno" way (FT, CB or MG), is that War Cry is NOT on the same timer as Greed and Dmg techs, so you can pump up War Cry to Duration = Regen Time. It's more difficult to play him as a greedy melee char, you must share War Cry timer with Vehemence or any other Melee CA. Less def boost means less greed boost to keep a good def. But my formula works to calculate WarCry regen time if melee, and greed regen time if techno dwarf.

However this is not a dwarf topic.

 

Back to our original topic, I just wanted to add :

 

For multi buff chars like BM who play with GM and Flame skin always on.

The formula is like :

The longest duration is for example GM with 120 seconds

Flame Skin is 60 seconds

I use Fireball as main dmg spell

Fireball is 1 sec regen time

 

During 1 GM, I'll have to fire 2 up Flame Skin

first I start calculating FS needed regen time

 

After calculation I use 30 fireball during 1 FS

My FS regen time must be 60 seconds - 30 fireballs * 1 second - a lil margin (3 seconds) = 27 seconds

 

so GM regen time is : 120 seconds - 2 FS * 27 seconds - 60 fireballs * 1 sec - the margin (say 3 sec) = 13 seconds

 

Now a time line analysis :

 

Time to walk and shop then buff and go kill some monsters ! need some :)

 

First cast GM and FS 13 seconds later (time lost by casting GM according to the regen time for GM calculted with the previous formula)

 

time = 0 : casting GM

time = 13 : Casting FS

time to battle : 30 fireballs

time = 73 : FS runs out ; Cast it again (60 seconds - 30 FB * 1 second = 30 > 27 seconds of regen); GM has been regenerated by : 73 seconds - 30 FB * 1 second - 1 FS * 27 seconds = 16 seconds of regeneration

time to battle till GM is off, that's 47 seconds and 22 fireballs

time = 120 : GM runs out : it has been regenerated by : 16 seconds (at time = 73) + 47 seconds of battle - 22 FB * 1 Second = 41 seconds ! Here comes the real battle, where all the values come into account.

time to battle : for 13 seconds (before FS runs out) : that's 8 FB

time = 133 : FS Runs out : cast it again : GM has been regenerated by : 13 seconds of battle - 8 FB * 1 second - 1 * FS * 27 seconds = 0

time to battle : 60 seconds = 30 fireballs

time = 193 : FS runs out (once again) : cast it again : GM has been regenerated by : 60 seconds of battle - 30 FB * 1 seconds - 1 FS * 27 = 3 seconds

time to battle : 47 seconds = 22 fireballs

time = 240 : GM runs out, it has been regenerated by : 3 seconds (got it at time = 193) + 47 seconds of battle - 22 FB * 1 seconds = 28 seconds

 

and 28 seconds of regen, apart from having very, very good stuff, that's a weak GM. Just imagine a Glad using Heroic courage and Dagger Stare, not much defense boost

 

As we can see, between the formula and the time line analysis, we find 15 seconds of difference for GM Regen time. It's due to the fact that there is a delay between the casting of GM and FS.

 

The formula is well under the reality, but everything in this explanation is theorical.

Nothing is better than pratice, but in case of a "one-buff" char, it is worth calculating it.

For "multi-buff" chars, a good way to go against this problem is "comboing" the two buffs, using the normal CA tofire up the shortest when it runs out. This way, we can a solution like this

GM Duration = 120 seconds, and regen = whatever you want

FS Duration = 60 seconds, and regen = 90 seconds (approx.) cause it has twice its own duration to regenerate.

Works even better if the 2 buffs have the same duration. Just 1 combo for all you need !

 

Conclusion of this mini guide :

This prove that :

 

RSM is VERY IMPORTANT as well as Skills that shorten regen time

Instead of eating runes, look for bonus, on items or by socketing

Instead of pumping up a spell or CA, try to improve your dmg by bonus (+xx% to <element> dmg and so on)

 

If you needed a level 20 fireball, regenerated in 1 second and fired 30 times to kill the mobs, maybe you only need a level 15 fireball with +80% to fire dmg and launch only 25 of them for the same results.

That is, you may have save 0.3 seconds of regen by fireballs and if we make a short calculation

30*1 = 30 seconds lost on the regen of your buffs

25 * 0.7 = 17.5 seconds only.... better GM, better FS, and FS is boosted by your bonus to fire dmg, and as GM is better, FB is shorter to regen, so you earn some seconds, so your GM is better, so ........... ad lib

 

 

That was a long one, but I got it

 

Hope it helps

 

 

EDIT ------ HTML VERSION OF THIS GUIDE HERE

Edited August 3, 2007 by Nihilith

[erialc 3]

wow Nihilith the HTML version is wicked!! Great work!!

[Nihilith 0]

wow Nihilith the HTML version is wicked! Great work!

 

Thanks Claire, more is coming.

[gogoblender 3,304]

Excellent work on this Guide Nihilith

Regen times is probably one of the most least understood things in the game lol

And your english is stellar..no worries there.

Can't say enough about that html version

Looking forward to the "more" !

 

 

gogo