Return of Reckoning

Hey everyone, I was hoping for some advice for my Bright Wizard because I feel like I can't really burst someone down unless they are not paying attention or I have at least 3 other people also contributing to killing them. Currently only rank 29, RR 28, and have all my mastery points in the path of immolation, running ignition tactic, and fuel to the fire, and basically my rotation is ignite >boiling blood > pyroclastic surge> detonate >withering heat > if still alive, fireball or reapply more dots. My int is only 833, and I feel like I get disrupted/blocked more than I land..is it normal that BW are just that underwhelming? Or am I doing it wrong? Any help would be appreciated.

Are you starting your rotation at or around max combustion? Most of the potency of BW comes from combustion management and timing of skills so that everything hits at once to burst a target. I think those tactics are fine.

Edit: removed my rotation recommendation since I'm a scrub.

MorboNinja wrote:Hey everyone, I was hoping for some advice for my Bright Wizard because I feel like I can't really burst someone down unless they are not paying attention or I have at least 3 other people also contributing to killing them. Currently only rank 29, RR 28, and have all my mastery points in the path of immolation, running ignition tactic, and fuel to the fire, and basically my rotation is ignite >boiling blood > pyroclastic surge> detonate >withering heat > if still alive, fireball or reapply more dots. My int is only 833, and I feel like I get disrupted/blocked more than I land..is it normal that BW are just that underwhelming? Or am I doing it wrong? Any help would be appreciated.

I would say that is pretty normal to be honest. The BW dot rotation is rather easily countered when people pay attention. Especially on the lower levels you're lacking the necessary crit rates to solo burst someone. Even with RR70 BW and close to BIS gear my success rates for solo bursts feel rather low.
However when you team up with a SW or Engi the fun begins.

As for your rotation I would swap detonate with withering heat and add Sear. So Ignite > Boiling Blood > Pyroclastic Surge > Sear > Withering Heat > Detanote (if necessary). With this BB, PS, Sear and WH will hit more or less in the same time stamp. For a bit more damage you can use fireball instead of pyroclastic surge. Makes you a bit more stationary due to the 3 sec casttime instead the 2 sec of PS.

Disrupt is a problem which you probably cant really address at your level. Later on you will get Flashfire and can spec Burn Through to alleviate the problem. In addition to some gear with disrupt strikethrough. As for block. If a target blocks, than you're hitting the wrong target

As was stated by cimba a lack of crit could be harming you a bit so don't feel frustrated just yet as you are on the right track.

Rotation wise at your level I would use ignite, detonate, boiling blood pyroclastic surge, burning iron and end with withering heat.

damage will come you are only a lil dps atm you just have to wait for the big crit chains.

experiment with Renown specs. You'll really will need to grind to RR40+ until you can get more RR spec points. Then spec for magic crit and the rest in defense (IMHO).
I don't recommend any of the tactics for BW except for Fuel to the Fire.
Your rotation isn't bad but it's too drawn out. The main point for DPS is to get the burst in as short as time as possible, so it doesn't get healed or cleansed.
ignite, BB, SB, WH/FB
or ignite, detonate, BB, SB, WH/FB
PS is one I only use against casters becuase it messes with their long casts.
For tanks almost dead (around <5% health) with shields on use Meltdown, and use a sequence to build Combustion fast as possible.
Nova, Detonate, Fiery Breath (always use this at close range), Meltdown. (Meltdown is undefendable damage, so it hits through all defences)
As soon as you can spec FireballBarrage (incin) IMHO, also with WH. That combination is one of the only spec for BW that works well for average players.

MorboNinja wrote:Hey everyone, I was hoping for some advice for my Bright Wizard because I feel like I can't really burst someone down unless they are not paying attention or I have at least 3 other people also contributing to killing them.

I read this topic title and couldn't help but feel pity for you... because I remember those exact words coming out of my mouth. I went from being a god in T3 to insect status when I hit T4. Let me try to help you by writing up some knowledge that I acquired as I slogged through the swamp

MorboNinja wrote:Currently only rank 29, RR 28

OK, first things first: like I said, you're going to be disappointed when you first enter T4. Just accept it and trust that things will get better (and relatively quickly). You're going to feel virtually useless until you get at least full Ruin, and even then, life ain't amazing - but being a good BW player can help a lot. Things will also start getting better around RR35+, and noticeably better at RR40+. Right now, just focus on getting to rank 40 & getting full Ruin ASAP.

MorboNinja wrote:have all my mastery points in the path of immolation, running ignition tactic, and fuel to the fire

I have played around with many specs, and this is the one that I've found to be my favorite: http://tinyurl.com/ydfgj6aw

This build allows for about as much mobility as humanly possible on a BW. And when you read mobility, think SURVIVABILITY. I forego some of the tradition BW spells in favor of fast insta/casting stuff, so I can keep moving 24/7. For example, Fireball Barrage is situationally good, but I use it only a fraction as much as I use my other spells, mainly because I don't like standing still that long. This build still allows for huge burst - trust me - so don't see the mobility as a weakness.

There are several slight variations of this build that are also great. I prefer Fireball Barrage over Withering Heat (even though I don't use it a ton), as it's faster channeling & more bursty than WH. You can also drop Burn Through and run the heal debuff in Immo if you want, but my personal 6man comp needs burst dmg more than a heal debuff outta me. If you really wanna run WH bad, you should drop Burn Through and run Ignition with it.

MorboNinja wrote:basically my rotation is ignite >boiling blood > pyroclastic surge> detonate >withering heat > if still alive, fireball or reapply more dots.

(Disclaimer: It's been a while, but I'm pretty sure this is what I did)
Using the build I linked above, your rotation should be Ignite>Boiling Blood>Slow Boil>Pyroclastic>Sear>Nova (and maybe Fireball Barrage if the situation warrants & it's safe to cast).

Take Detonate off your hotbar, unless you're like pure AE spec.

USE FLAME BREATH - major tip for new BW's!! Just spam this as you run around, and it'll build up combustion so that you can always start your actual rotation with 100 combustion - deadly

DON'T USE MELTDOWN - at least generally speaking. I see a lotta new BW's using this constantly (I think they're terrified of Backlash damage?? Idk). Remember that combustion is your bread & butter - don't just throw away all your hard earned $$$ for a very blah 1sec nuke. Unless you're SURE that it'll secure you a kill, and that there's no other way to secure that kill, AND that you'll have time after using it to safely & quickly build combustion back up to 100... just don't do it

USE FUNNEL POWER 24/7 - unless you're solo or something weird (rethink life choices at this point). Make sure it's always on!

Keep in mind that you'll also be getting near-constant procs of Flash Fire, allowing you to throw in insta-cast Fireballs when the time is right. It's always nice to hit tanks that you know will probably disrupt you just to feed yourself insta-fireball procs that you can then switch targets and throw at a squishy.

One other thing I'll say about this build & playstyle - you will not be top dmg on the scenario scoreboards, but if you play this right, you (and your group) will notice substantially increased lethality. If you just wanna pad scoreboard numbers, this isn't the build for you. However, burst like this is very hard to heal through, and your Deathblows will go up - as will your sense of actually being useful

MorboNinja wrote:My int is only 833, and I feel like I get disrupted/blocked more than I land..is it normal that BW are just that underwhelming?

OK, now for what I'm sure will be the most controversial part of my post... your stats. First of all, yes, getting disrupted a ton at your level & gear is completely normal, and it only gets marginally better as you go up. It's just the bane of all BW's.

Almost all conventional BW wisdom that you'll run across says to tunnel vision Magic Crit. While Magic Crit is indeed awesome, and I am 100% in favor of playing BW as the glass cannon it's supposed to be, my advice to you is this: stack your gear/talismans/Renown Abilities in Int until you get 900+. At that point, start backing down your Renown Abilities outta Int (while maintaining at least 900) and into Magic Crit when you can. Keeping your Int high helps a lot in cutting down on the disrupts and provides a nice, solid foundation for big crits. Your tertiary stat priority should be Wounds.

I hope all this helps. I remember exactly what it's like being in your shoes. Don't give up! BW can be an incredibly deadly and rewarding class if you stick with it & play it right! Feel free to hit me up anytime you see me in game (NA time) - I'm happy to be of service if I can

Cimba wrote:However when you team up with a SW or Engi the fun begins.

Just wanted to add a big /agree here. If you have friends to play with, try finding a SW in particular. BW + SW is an extremely dangerous duo and a world of fun to play together. Get in voice comms and get your coordination down, and you'll see what amazing force multipliers these 2 classes are for each other

Int ONLY affects the disrupt your opponent gains from their Willpower. This is different from Live. Once your int hits about 500ish, you won't see any discernible lessening of disrupts(as exceptionally few people stack WP that high[or BG buff..])

Everyone and their mother stacks deft defender. That with anni gives you 20% disrupt that can ONLY be negated via disrupt strike through, items/procs/tactics/abilities that lessen evasion chances.

Team up with a SW. They'll drop your enemies evasion enough for you to melt em. Oh, and the spamable heal debuff, RKD, and snare's support the BW very well...

Dabbart wrote:Int ONLY affects the disrupt your opponent gains from their Willpower. This is different from Live. Once your int hits about 500ish, you won't see any discernible lessening of disrupts(as exceptionally few people stack WP that high[or BG buff..])

100% true, and I'll adjust my post slightly. However, I think you'd be astounded at how many uninformed/casual healers stack Willpower... don't underestimate ignorance. I have sought advice from a lot of people and entered into several conversations since I started playing AM recently where I discovered that there are truly a lot of healers out there who just don't know any better (i.e. lotsa "stacking WP gives you wtfamazing heals bro, you totes should")

Good point.

And I never underestimate stupidity... "if you want to understand how dumb humanity is, think about how stupid the average person is, and then realize that half of all people are dumber than that...." -George Carlin