DaveO 88 Posted February 1, 2014 Author Share Posted February 1, 2014 After thinking over this build and the intent, I do agree that Mentalism Focus should be taken and not Lore. You could argue that Spell Resistance could be replaced by choosing Kybele to heal if needed. Shield Lore could possibly be added back or Damage Lore. Damage Lore seems to be a better choice due to it impacting multiple combat arts of the Dragon Mage as well as damage inflicted from the ranged attack. Link to comment
Flix 5,116 Posted February 1, 2014 Share Posted February 1, 2014 (edited) I didn't realize it back then, but to me now the big benefit of the Lore is the increased casting speed. I've grown a bit wiser in Sacred 2 since my last posts in this thread. However, even so, I'd still agree you should take the Focus for a staff-user. Those alternate skills all sound good to me. Shield Lore especially is important because once higher level shields start dropping, they will penalize your attack speed without the skill. This won't be an issue if using two-handed staves of course. I'm actually hoping some of my new sets can help out a weapon-using Dragon Mage. I did some Niobium runs in Artamark and Nor Plat with the full Chaoskampf set and a magic staff/shield setup. It was...decent, all things considered. The main problem is crowd control. The DM could really use a hybrid damage combat art like the High Elf's Magic Coup, that could be modded for some splash damage. Edited February 1, 2014 by Flix Link to comment
chattius 2,526 Posted February 1, 2014 Share Posted February 1, 2014 I posted once that I changed the buggy experience mod of the companion to add 10+0,3% per ca level as weapon splash damage. Exploding shots are way more fun, and it s just 50% end game how I did it 1 Link to comment
Flix 5,116 Posted February 1, 2014 Share Posted February 1, 2014 I posted once that I changed the buggy experience mod of the companion to add 10+0,3% per ca level as weapon splash damage. Exploding shots are way more fun, and it s just 50% end game how I did it That's a good idea, and very simple to execute. I like it a lot. I was actually thinking more grandiose plans, like replacing a CA with one like Magic Coup, and adding some attack-based bonuses to Combat Trance. Something to boost the Dragon Mage's melee/ranged powers overall. It's only a fantasy right now though. Link to comment
DaveO 88 Posted October 1, 2016 Author Share Posted October 1, 2016 How many times have I thought and re-thought this build? More times than I could probably count. With more understanding and experience playing the game, here are hopefully the final skills and why I choose them. 2. Magic Staffs - Ranged attack ASAP3. Tactics - Increased Damage from magic staff attacks5. Elemental Magic Lore - Mod to get stun early8. Dragon Magic Focus - Intelligence boost for more spell and staff damage12. Armor - Sets start to become available18. Concentration - Two spell buffs, eventually up to three25. Mentalism Lore - Increased physical damage resistance35. Dragon Magic Lore - Increased damage, plus needed mods for Dragon Strike and Eternal Fire50. Constituion - Added hitpoint bonus65. Ancient Magic - Cut thru enemy resistance, plus increase spell damage You may be asking why no spell resistance? With the Familiar increase in Willpower, I believe there will be enough defense against the life leech spell attacks in Niobium Blood Forest. 1 Link to comment
DaveO 88 Posted January 15, 2021 Author Share Posted January 15, 2021 I decided to try yet another revision to skills for this build into the Enhanced Edition to see how it performs vs Community Patch. 2 - Magic Staff 3 - Tactics 5 - Elemental Magic Focus - Gust of Wind stun and attempt to maximize spell power from the spells 8 - Armor Lore 12 - Mentalism Focus - Maximize rune usage and buff protection 18 - Dragon Magic Lore 25 - Concentration 35 - Dragon Magic Focus 50 - Constitution 65 - Ancient Magic - Increase spell power and reduce enemy spell resistance Unfortunately, with this skill choice I don't see any place for Shield Lore to be a part of the build. 1 Link to comment
DaveO 88 Posted January 28, 2021 Author Share Posted January 28, 2021 Ok, with the new changes from EE and some additional thought below will be my final skill choices: 2 - Magic Staff 3 - Tectics 5 - Elemental Magic Focus 8 - Concentration 12 - Armor Lore 18 - Mentalism Focus 25 - Dragon Magic Focus 35 - Shield Lore 50 - Constitution 65 - Ancient Magic With just the focuses, the character should still be able to do well. I'll probably master concentration first to have the three focuses benefit even better. Link to comment
chattius 2,526 Posted January 29, 2021 Share Posted January 29, 2021 Is this without alternative spells for EE? Link to comment
Flix 5,116 Posted January 29, 2021 Share Posted January 29, 2021 It's funny reading my comments from 2014, where modding the game was a distant dream. The Alt. spells module should make the Dragon Mage into an absolute beast with Magic Staves, since it will add Dragon's Wrath and Elemental Strike to the lineup. Link to comment
chattius 2,526 Posted January 30, 2021 Share Posted January 30, 2021 11 hours ago, Flix said: It's funny reading my comments from 2014, where modding the game was a distant dream. The Alt. spells module should make the Dragon Mage into an absolute beast with Magic Staves, since it will add Dragon's Wrath and Elemental Strike to the lineup. My first thought when the dragon mage came out was that he needed a bit more melee power- perhaps 'splash-damage' would be nice for my Sohei. So I changed the useless +x%experience from the companion into splash damage. Todays it is a lot of difference between alternative spells and normal. To make maximum damage with an 'elemental strike'-build elemental lore should be chosen. Thats why I asked if he plays with alt module. Link to comment
DaveO 88 Posted February 1, 2021 Author Share Posted February 1, 2021 I went full in on the Enhanced Edition, including the spell modifications. I also added all the optional stuff with the exception of the challenge mod. Link to comment
DaveO 88 Posted April 22, 2021 Author Share Posted April 22, 2021 I'm going to switch my higher level skills. 35 - Ancient Magic 50 - Shield Lore 65 - Constitution 1 Link to comment
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