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4 years ago ::
Mar 22, 2009 - 12:31PM
#1
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Date Joined:
Jun 17, 2006
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Here's a collection of stuff I learned playing a sorcerer (Aron Times, lawful good human dragon sorcerer).
1. Chaos Bolt is useful for any kind of sorcerer because it is the only at-will spell that targets Will, which tends to be the lowest monster defense.
2. Chaos Bolt loses its ability to bounce if you're not a chaos sorcerer, but on the bright side, it's safer to use when facing solos or elites.
3. I suggest the following at-will selections for human sorcerers:
Melee - Burning Spray (Reflex), Chaos Bolt (Will), Dragonfrost* (Fortitude)
Ranged - Acid Orb* (Reflex), Chaos Bolt (Will), Storm Walk (Fortitude)
*Ranged basic attack. Very useful if you have a bard or a warlord or both in the party.
4. The sorcerer's retaliatory spells (e.g. Dragonspray, Lightning Breath, Dragonflame Mantle) serve to discourage enemies from attacking you. Intentionally getting hit (e.g. by provoking opportunity attacks) with any of these spells on is a bad idea; you're still a glass cannon.
5. However, if you have a shielding swordmage in the party, feel free to provoke opportunity attacks to trigger your retaliatory spells. We discovered this nice combo yesterday.
6. If the DM chooses not to let the enemy take his opportunity attack against you, feel free to move into a flanking position and punish the monster with combat advantage (you don't even need Sorcerous Blade Channeling if your DM is unwilling to take damage from your retaliatory spells).
7. If you run out of enemies for Chaos Bolt, target yourself (or anyone with a high Will). Your Will defense should be high enough for it to miss, preventing it from bouncing again (it bounces each time you hit AND roll even on the attack roll). Our drow chaos sorcerer hit four monsters and missed the last target (me) with one Chaos Bolt yesterday. That's a 3.125% chance of happening.
Lucky bastard.
8. Arcane Spellfury works really well with Action Surge. First, spend an action point to get an extra action and +3 to attacks on that action. Fire an at-will at the target. If you hit (and you likely will), you get +1 to attacks against that target until the end of your next turn. Fire a second at-will with a +1 bonus. If you hit, your bonus against him is now +2 until the end of your next turn.
On your next turn, hit him with the heavy guns, either an encounter spell or a daily spell with a +2 attack bonus. The end result is a total of a +6 attack bonus from one action point.
9. For dragon sorcerers, Fire and Cold spells work well together, and the same holds true for Lightning and Thunder. However, Acid and Poison don't have any synergy with each other.
10. The Voice of Thunder bard paragon path works well with thunder-based dragon sorcerers. It's basically a striker paragon path for those who specialize in Thunder spells.
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4 years ago ::
Mar 22, 2009 - 2:48PM
#2
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Date Joined:
Nov 16, 2005
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If you're playing that you can't pick targets for Chaos bolt (and therefore have to pick players after the visible enemies run out), then he was luckier than that again.
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4 years ago ::
Mar 22, 2009 - 3:30PM
#3
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Yeah, I really love the Voice of Thunder PP. You've pretty much confirmed most of my opinions, thanks. 
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4 years ago ::
Mar 22, 2009 - 3:39PM
#4
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Does anyone else think there is an inherent weakness in going the Thunder route because most of the attacks target Fortitude? As implement powers my experience has always been hitting Fortitude is nearly a lost cause except during nova turns where there are a bunch of to hit modifiers being slung around.
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4 years ago ::
Mar 22, 2009 - 4:08PM
#5
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I have always played that you can fire at an empty hex. This has been important because sometimes enemies are invisible or more likely in the drow's darkness effect.
Monsters use this all the time to attack the drow at -5 attack. This means the Chaos Bolt has no real chance of hitting a party member though.
What do people think about that? Do most people play this way?
Mike Donais.
Cryptozoic R&D
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4 years ago ::
Mar 22, 2009 - 4:18PM
#6
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I have always played that you can fire at an empty hex. This has been important because sometimes enemies are invisible or more likely in the drow's darkness effect.
Monsters use this all the time to attack the drow at -5 attack. This means the Chaos Bolt has no real chance of hitting a party member though.
What do people think about that? Do most people play this way?
Chaos Bolt could just use some better explanation. Here are the options:
1. You roll evens, you make a secondary attack if you choose to (no danger)
2. You roll evens, you must make a secondary attack, you can attack empty spaces (you can hit an empty square until you roll odds: no danger)
3. You roll evens, you must make a secondary attack, and attack a valid target that your DM agrees to (dangerous)
4. You roll evens, the DM makes the secondary attack against a target for you. (scary)
I feel like 3 was implied since it's a CHAOS bolt. However, no one really knows, and we all just kinda pick our own definitions. I think 1 or 2 are technically the RAW. If 2 is accurate, technically you can attack an empty space to start raging as a barbarian.
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4 years ago ::
Mar 22, 2009 - 4:30PM
#7
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I can that 1 is RAI having developed the power myself. Unfortunately it isn't super clear. But as you mention 2 is RAW and it has the same effect as 1.
The chaos was meant to come from never knowing how many enemies you will hit, not from the danger to friends.
I never would want stuff in the game that gave players and excuse to damage other party members.
Saying, "Sorry, the power forced me to kill you!" is just not good for group play.
Mike Donais.
Cryptozoic R&D
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4 years ago ::
Mar 22, 2009 - 5:12PM
#8
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I can that 1 is RAI having developed the power myself. Unfortunately it isn't super clear. But as you mention 2 is RAW and it has the same effect as 1.
The chaos was meant to come from never knowing how many enemies you will hit, not from the danger to friends.
I never would want stuff in the game that gave players and excuse to damage other party members.
Saying, "Sorry, the power forced me to kill you!" is just not good for group play.
Yeah leave the hurting your allies to those evil Dark Pact Warlocks, they at least give you a safety word to get out of the pain!
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4 years ago ::
Mar 22, 2009 - 5:50PM
#9
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Date Joined:
Jan 30, 2005
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2. Chaos Bolt loses its ability to bounce if you're not a chaos sorcerer, but on the bright side, it's safer to use when facing solos or elites.
If you run out of enemies, just attack the "invisible guy".
7. If you run out of enemies for Chaos Bolt, target yourself (or anyone with a high Will). Your Will defense should be high enough for it to miss, preventing it from bouncing again (it bounces each time you hit AND roll even on the attack roll). Our drow chaos sorcerer hit four monsters and missed the last target (me) with one Chaos Bolt yesterday. That's a 3.125% chance of happening.
See above.
8. Arcane Spellfury works really well with Action Surge. First, spend an action point to get an extra action and +3 to attacks on that action. Fire an at-will at the target. If you hit (and you likely will), you get +1 to attacks against that target until the end of your next turn. Fire a second at-will with a +1 bonus. If you hit, your bonus against him is now +2 until the end of your next turn.
On your next turn, hit him with the heavy guns, either an encounter spell or a daily spell with a +2 attack bonus. The end result is a total of a +6 attack bonus from one action point.
Doesn't work. Bonuses from the same source don't stack. Arcane Spellfury will never give you more than +1 to attack any particular guy.
9. For dragon sorcerers, Fire and Cold spells work well together, and the same holds true for Lightning and Thunder. However, Acid and Poison don't have any synergy with each other.
10. The Voice of Thunder bard paragon path works well with thunder-based dragon sorcerers. It's basically a striker paragon path for those who specialize in Thunder spells.
My biggest advice, do not get sucked into the Lightning/Thunder. I tried it and the issue is verything attacks Fort. WotC has done a poor job with monsters in that almost every monster's Fort is about at his AC and significantly higher than Reflex and Will. Having some powers that attack Fort (such as Adamantine Echo and Thunder Breath) is fine, and I would take Resounding Thunder for these, but I would not go purely Lightning/Thunder. With a maxed attack bonus, I literally missed 14 out 15 times over two rounds with Rolling Echos (Voice of Thunder 11th level power). Not granted I rolled extremely low, but I was hitting 27's, which would have been hitting all of the enemy's Ref and Will but missed all of their Forts.
So be careful of the "synergy" with Lightning/Thunder. As Admiral Ackbar would say, "IT'S A TRAP!" :D
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4 years ago ::
Mar 22, 2009 - 5:54PM
#10
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Thanks for the tips. I always enjoy reports on how a character has preformed in actual play. I can that 1 is RAI having developed the power myself. Unfortunately it isn't super clear. But as you mention 2 is RAW and it has the same effect as 1.
The chaos was meant to come from never knowing how many enemies you will hit, not from the danger to friends.
I never would want stuff in the game that gave players and excuse to damage other party members.
Saying, "Sorry, the power forced me to kill you!" is just not good for group play.
Thanks for this. Makes interpreting RAI nice and easy.
To be completely honest though, there are a couple characters in my group that I wouldn't mind hitting with a Chaos Bolt every once in a while.
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