How do you time your CAs

[Vandiyan]

Just wondering what everyone does to space out their CAs so that they don't overwrite too many auto-attacks.  I assume it is pretty impossible to not overwrite some but wanted to put it to a minimum (especially since I have the double attack bonus from having 3 pieces of Wu gear.)  During a raid it is just too difficult to try and go by the animation and if I try and keep track in my head I wind up loosing it at some point. 

[BChizzle]

I time it in my head.  It is second nature after years of doing it.  Its gets tough in lag but everyone takes a dps hit when it lags.

[Couching]

To time your CA, first, get a pair of same delay weapons. Second, put your combat information in a window without other channels. Last, hit your CA after auto-attack landing on mobs. To max your dps, you need a pair of weapons with larger than 1 delay after hasted. Otherwise, you are going to lose auto attacks no matter how you time your CA. How to verify you did good timing on CA or not, you can check your log with ACT. It shows your actually weapon delay. Comparing your weapon delay with haste and actual delay in your log by ACT, you can get a rough idea of how many auto-attack you lose by CA. For example, if you have a pair of 1.6 delay weapons. With 100% haste, it should be 0.8 delay ideally. However, in your log, your weapon delay is 1.1 only, it means 38% of your atuo-attack were wasted. Also, you need to consider what buff you have. For example, did you get double attack from illusionist or from dirge? Or if you have weapon with double attack? Besides, don't forget we have 100% double attack in 16 sec when we hit crane flock. Basically, it's not hard if there is no lag while playing. For example, I have checked my parse on 3rd floor of EH. I was dueling two 2.5 delay weapon with group of dirge and zerker. With my self haste, it's about 105% haste. Moreover, I will get temp haste buff from zerker and dirge pluse 10% double attack from dirge. The actual delay I got on ACT is 0.5 (since both of my weapons are slashing damage, that's why). See, I did good timing on CA since the ideal delay of my weapon should be 1.1-1.2 depends on temp buffs. Though, with 10% double attack and several crane flock I used, I got 1 sec delay on both weapons rather than 1.1-1.2. PS: This example is merged from 13 fights of trash and Herald of Woushi on 3rd EH. The total length is 20 minutes.

[Vandiyan]

PM sent your way Couching.<img src="/smilies/ed515dbff23a0ee3241dcc0a601c9ed6.gif" border="0" alt="SMILEY" />

[Couching]

Hi Vandiyan09, The ACT will calculate the average delay of your melee attack for you. Click your name in each fight, you will see the detail of the fight. The first is melee (out), the second is non-melee (out), etc. You can find your average delay in the end of the melee (out). After knowing your average delay in the fight, you can compare it to your ideal weapon delay and find out how many auto attack you have lost in the fight. For example, if you have a pair of 1.6 delay weapons with 100% haste, your ideal weapon delay is 0.8 sec. Now, assuming your average delay from ACT is 1.1. The difference between ideal delay and actual delay from ACT is 0.3 sec. In other word, you should hit 60/0.8 = 75 times on each weapon but you only hit 60/1.1 = 54.5. You have lost 21 hits per minute on each weapon. In other word, you should hit 21/54 = 38% times more but you didn't. That's how 38% comes from in the last post. Or you can get it from 0.3/0.8 =38% since your actual delay is 0.3 sec longer than ideal delay. I hope I have answered your questions. <img src="/smilies/3b63d1616c5dfcf29f8a7a031aaa7cad.gif" border="0" alt="SMILEY" />

[Khrump]

Please enlighten me.  What is "ACT" you refer to.  Is it something like a parse program?

[Khrump]

NM, I found it at <a href="http://home.maine.rr.com/eqaditu/ACT/" target="_blank" rel="nofollow">http://home.maine.rr.com/eqaditu/ACT/</a>

[Junaru]

Couching@Crushbone wrote: <blockquote>To time your CA, first, get a pair of same delay weapons. Second, put your combat information in a window without other channels. Last, hit your CA after auto-attack landing on mobs. To max your dps, you need a pair of weapons with larger than 1 delay after hasted. Otherwise, you are going to lose auto attacks no matter how you time your CA. How to verify you did good timing on CA or not, you can check your log with ACT. It shows your actually weapon delay. Comparing your weapon delay with haste and actual delay in your log by ACT, you can get a rough idea of how many auto-attack you lose by CA. For example, if you have a pair of 1.6 delay weapons. With 100% haste, it should be 0.8 delay ideally. However, in your log, your weapon delay is 1.1 only, it means 38% of your atuo-attack were wasted. Also, you need to consider what buff you have. For example, did you get double attack from illusionist or from dirge? Or if you have weapon with double attack? Besides, don't forget we have 100% double attack in 16 sec when we hit crane flock. Basically, it's not hard if there is no lag while playing. For example, I have checked my parse on 3rd floor of EH. I was dueling two 2.5 delay weapon with group of dirge and zerker. With my self haste, it's about 105% haste. Moreover, I will get temp haste buff from zerker and dirge pluse 10% double attack from dirge. The actual delay I got on ACT is 0.5 (since both of my weapons are slashing damage, that's why). See, I did good timing on CA since the ideal delay of my weapon should be 1.1-1.2 depends on temp buffs. Though, with 10% double attack and several crane flock I used, I got 1 sec delay on both weapons rather than 1.1-1.2. PS: This example is merged from 13 fights of trash and Herald of Woushi on 3rd EH. The total length is 20 minutes. </blockquote>For the most part this is correct but since the changes to AGI things have changed some what. Using a 1.6s weapon with 100% haste you have a 0.8s delay. With a cast time of 0.5s and a recover time of 0.5 seconds you will normally lose out on some auto attacks between casting. But going down the AGI you now have access to Baton Flurry. With 5 points into AGI(2) Baton Flurry you can cut you recovery time to 0.3s which would give you a delay of 0.8s delay. So as long as you have Baton Flurry up (which should be always since AGI(3) lets you reapply it before is wears off by lowering the recast timer) you will never miss an auto attack.

[Couching]

That's another way to avoid wasting auto attack if you don't have a pair of 2.5 delay weapons. Though, if you get agi line, it means you will miss either int or wise line. Even you get 4 4 8 on agi, int and wis lines, you miss the crane flock. Crane flock is nice in raid, group or solo. It last 16 sec for every 3 minutes. The bottom line of crane flock gives you 8% double attack average if you use it as long as it's up. Not to say, a lot of trash mobs or epic named are multiple encounters in EoF raids. If you use it appropriately , it will boost your auto-attack 15% zone wide averagely. In group, you can get over 2k+ dps with crane flock easily and hold multiple adds on you. It's really useful when mobs hit hard and fast. Crane flock with tsunami combo = full burn for 12 sec without dying of any group member. In group encounters, even group mobs in CMM or unrest, 12 sec full burn can kill most of them.  No matter your role is MT or dps in group, crane flock is handy. For solo, use crane flock and tsunami combo at 30% hp with extra 75% critical hit = dead mobs.

[Uien]

Couching sent you a P.M. also thanks just a quick question.

[Junaru]

Couching@Crushbone wrote: <blockquote>That's another way to avoid wasting auto attack if you don't have a pair of 2.5 delay weapons. Though, if you get agi line, it means you will miss either int or wise line. Even you get 4 4 8 on agi, int and wis lines, you miss the crane flock. Crane flock is nice in raid, group or solo. It last 16 sec for every 3 minutes. The bottom line of crane flock gives you 8% double attack average if you use it as long as it's up. Not to say, a lot of trash mobs or epic named are multiple encounters in EoF raids. If you use it appropriately , it will boost your auto-attack 15% zone wide averagely. In group, you can get over 2k+ dps with crane flock easily and hold multiple adds on you. It's really useful when mobs hit hard and fast. Crane flock with tsunami combo = full burn for 12 sec without dying of any group member. In group encounters, even group mobs in CMM or unrest, 12 sec full burn can kill most of them.  No matter your role is MT or dps in group, crane flock is handy. For solo, use crane flock and tsunami combo at 30% hp with extra 75% critical hit = dead mobs. </blockquote> I raid at least once a week with a Monk & Bruiser with INT/WIS build. The Bruiser has better gear then myself and the Monk is near the same. Granted on named fights and multi mobs they tend to out parse me but only a few times have I not parsed higher zone wide. 99% of the time the Bruiser and I are in the same group. and zonewide I tend to parse higher. I have no doubts that INT/WIS build is best for soloing but I've taken down every named in SoS with my build and poets is a joke.

[Dampari]

So how do you have the agi line setup then.

[Deathspell]

I'd like to know how you can keep up with Bruisers, is it casting order? Are some combinations of attacks working better? The Bruisers are always outparsing me by 300-500, what am I missing? Do they have other classes' buffs?

[BChizzle]

AGI is ineffective for a monk.  Most of our spells have such a short recast its just not worth it.  The quick recast is a bruiser ability more than us.  You want to focus on hitting as many auto attacks in between ca's as you can and if you time it right you barely have more then a few seconds between cycles where no CA's are up anyway.  At a certain DPS point your auto attack crits will hit harder then your CA's so every CA u use that causes you to miss an auto attack effectively cuts into your dps.  Don't forget to use crit potions either they make huge difference.