i've read that Illusionists are "Great" at soloing. Is it really true?

[Thavek]

I've been browsing the boards and on various soloing related threads I've seen people popping up saying that Illusionists are great at soloing.  Is this really true?  I have a 17 illusionist and I haven't noticed that he solo's any better than my 17 sk, or 31 swashie, and definatly not as good as my 27 conjuror.   If Illie's are good at soloing will it get better later on?  I guess there must be something that I'm just not seeing regarding Illies, can someone give me some insight?

[Banditman]

Given patience and enough room, Illusionists can solo any mob in the game that is not epic.

[Zecht]

Using all your utilities (mez, stun, stifle, root) and managing your pet (let him cast, pull him back, root mob, repeat) at the right times should enable you to solo just about anything that doesn't repeatedly resist you (above yellow, epics, all those baddies).It's a super fun class to solo with because it's not just about doing as much damage as possible the entire time.  There's a lot of skill involved to be manage DoT timers, mez expirations, and especially pet "fishing" (as i like to call it, lol)  It can be DREADFULLY slow at times, but in my opinion it's more enjoyable than root+nuke.

[Zard]

I have 10 characters of all archetypes and my Illusionist is my best soloer, rivalled only by my Shadowknight; I do not have any Summoners. Killing solo monsters even +4 levels above me is very fast, simple and safe. If I get an add -- or two -- no big deal, I just mez them, finish the first one, rest a little then finish the others at my leisure. Orange monsters (+5 or +6 levels) are more challenging, due to resists, and not worth hunting unless I need them for a quest, have to get past them or am ambushed. I do not enjoy hunting heroic monsters primarily due to the time -- not the risk -- involved.

 

So, to answer your question, YES!   :smileyvery-happy:

 

ps. I remember the olde days, before we had a pet, where I would run from green solo monsters if I got ambushed. Now I just wade into them taking up to three encounters at a time while chatting.   /flex

 

pps. This was pre-LU29 (EoF release) so that may all change when I login tonight!   :smileysurprised:

 

ppps. I have mostly Treasured gear, 1 adept III, 2 master 1's and NO Fabled so, if my frail high-elf can do it, anyone can!

Message Edited by DeathMutant on 11-14-2006 05:17 PM

[BrotherRathgar]

This [expletive haxx0red by Raijinn] calls us Illie's??? Go back to your SK, we can't solo

[Kamarile]

I would clarify a little...

Yes, we can solo just about anything in the game that's not flat-out immune to mezz (or epic), but it can be rather slow.  If you want as much xp in as short a time as possible from soloing, there are better classes out there.  The illusionist is a very fun class, but it can be hard work.

[Chay]

It's all about how you play. If you're expecting to kill really tough stuff fast well you'll end up frustrated. It you know how to manage your skills and fight efficiently you can do fine.You're not about overpowering the opposition... Illusionists do not zerg well. Illusionist is about the judicious use of power and skill.

[Jvaloth]

Ya, and Illusionists are frail.

 

You're always one mistake, one resist, one root break away from 1 shot death on the tougher mobs and heroic named 

 

 

 

[UnderToad]

If I was you Id ignore any advice given before the latest changes.  My M1 root is nigh useless now, as is my pets.  You can still solo pretty well but only on easy mobs.

[Zard]

Yep, I feel the effects of EoF (LU29?) too. Monsters +2 levels now require my full attention, +3 are risky and I may have to break if I get an add; I have not tried a +4 yet. I'm currently level 66 and this is on Faydwer; KoS might be different.  I've also been noticing far more resists than what I'm used to (my skills are maxed) so a close fight could end poorly if a spell was resisted at a critical time.  :smileysurprised:

[Pins]

I solo'd a Level 74 heroic named in Mistmoore Castle with the mez/stun/nuke/proc method. Didn't seem that much more difficult than pre-GU29.

[Ryk]

I have no trouble soloing, at 70 I have soloed numerous ^^^ named in the new add on ranging from 65 to 70.  Like said above, with patience and proper spell management an illusionist can solo anything not epic.

[Zebsen]

A level 74 named heroic?  I don't have uber gear, but resists limit me to about level 70 on soloing with the ultra painful stun/nuke/mez method.  I have to make sure the first stun lands before nuking/meleeing too.  If I had more + casting skill gear, or waited for momentary sentiment to be up, I'd probably be a lot safer.

On the plus side, our mementary sentiment that I considered be virtually pointless before the combat changes now seems to have a noticeable inpact on lowering resists and doing more damage via increased int.

 

 

[Pins]

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ZebsenChanter wrote:A level 74 named heroic?  I don't have uber gear, but resists limit me to about level 70 on soloing with the ultra painful stun/nuke/mez method.  I have to make sure the first stun lands before nuking/meleeing too.  If I had more + casting skill gear, or waited for momentary sentiment to be up, I'd probably be a lot safer.On the plus side, our mementary sentiment that I considered be virtually pointless before the combat changes now seems to have a noticeable inpact on lowering resists and doing more damage via increased int.

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Yah, Momentary Sentiment is much better now. Either way, it was a 10+ minute fight.

[Koilla]

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Pinski wrote:


Yah, Momentary Sentiment is much better now. Either way, it was a 10+ minute fight.

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how do you manage to keep mana that long? atm i am a 57illu, got manareg on a3, mastercraftet t6-gear and my other spells are a1.

 

i´ve tried this stun/nuke/dot/root-thing, but still running out of mana... using the cannibalize spell and also manastone1 all the time, but mana is allways low.

 

i also let the dots run out or nearly run out, and reroot very late

[UmanAsi]

If you have a pet which you should, mez, root, and let the pet hit, once or twice and mez, and repeat that

[Sillililygirl]

My illusionist has soloed most of the way to level 40.  Quests help a lot. She's also managed to do a lot of quests sooner than my mystic or fury or monk. (When I still had a monk.)The trick is definitely how you use your pet/mez/other spells. Having an adept 3 pet is a definite necessity and you'll probably need to cast your pet multiple times sometimes.

[Zard]

Pets heal at an amazing rate during combat so you can do amazing things by putting the combat on hold, by mezzing, then taking a break to regen power and health (for your pet). Sorcerors have to go all out to kill something before it kills them but Enchanters have the luxury of calling a "timeout" -- so take advantage of that for the really tough fights.

This works well in group situations too though it's harder to convince party members to stop fighting for a few seconds, heal and regenerate power. If I could only mez my own party members. . .  :smileywink:

[Sadaro]

Illusionists can solo higher level mobs, but conjurers/necromancers get XP faster from soloing.For particularly difficult mobs -- and any heroic spellcaster, the illusionist breaks down to stun-(nuke+proc)-mez, wait for timers to refresh, repeat.  This means it takes a while to solo these mobs.For non-spellcaster mobs, it gets a little easier.  The typical sequence is root-send in pet (who usually roots)-nuke-dot-recall pet.  When the root breaks early, it's quick stun-long stun-clear any dots-mez.  Of course, if the root breaks and you're too close, you'll die pretty quickly.Sadari

[Manyak]

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Koilla wrote:

i´ve tried this stun/nuke/dot/root-thing, but still running out of mana... using the cannibalize spell and also manastone1 all the time, but mana is allways low.

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Savante + Mana flow yourself (effectively regens 15% power). Godking weapon and Fitzpitzles should keep your HP high enough to do it along with the siphoning. And forget manastone, it takes away too much HP for the low amount of power it gives. Only use that in case of an emergency if ur solo.

The nest robe and MO pants help alot too. Maybe even the 3 princes wand (although i think id stick with godking heals when solo).

Worst comes to worst, get urself some clarity potions and heal potions.

Message Edited by DaMutation on 11-22-2006 03:32 AM

[Koilla]

thanks for the bunch of info..

 

need to get a replacement for godking though, cause i dont wanna go through the whole questline anymore. once done with my guardian, i wont do it with the illu....

but hint with healpotions and manapotions is very good, so my alchi finally got something to do

 

atm i am using prisma1 and try to get as many spells as i can effort on a3. need to safe some money for masters in t7 hehe

 

 

stuck in claymore with the illu atm, so its plenty of work to do.

 

i´m only 58 so far, so nestrobe and the pants you mentioned arent available right now to me, but will focus on that asap =)

[Manyak]

oh, only 58.....then just get lots of FT gear, im sure ull stumble upon more than u need

[Sillililygirl]

hmmm never thought of calling a "break" in combat.Probably cause I usually end up fighting in an area where i have 1 to 3 adds. :pI should give that a try when I start hunting in DoF or EoF.

[Seffrid]

I've been finding in the 20s and 30s that soloing is so fast that the only problem I have is the rate at which my vitality drops.

I'll likely need to adapt my tactics at higher levels, but currently I do very well just sending in the pet(s), throwing some nukes at the mob and then dots once the pet has moved forward and rooted/taken aggro, following which I can move in and add the odd smack without getting hit while throwing a few more nukes. I let the pet take the damage because he heals quicker, but even so I look for mitigation in my gear and with pretty well all my characters I only buy chest pieces that are imbued with a heal. Incidentally, I wish the broker had a separate category for all that fancy dress stuff you have to wade through page after page to find the proper adventuring gear.

If I get adds or it's a group encounter then I do an AoE mez and switch my target to assist the pet so I know which mob we're both concentrating on while keeping the others mezzed.

I know our pets usually cast Root for themselves,  but do they ever mez? I haven't noticed that they do.

[Manyak]

yes, if u are fighting solo mobs u are likely to be able to tear though them pretty much non-stop, as ull be able to keep both ur HP and MP close enough to full to keep going. but for the most part, this whole topic has been about soloing heroics, not solo mobs

[Ardnahoy]

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Seffrid wrote:

I know our pets usually cast Root for themselves,  but do they ever mez? I haven't noticed that they do.

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I have never seen my pet cast mez. He usually casts root, stun, AoE stun, and some nukes. Root has a stun component, and so does one of our nukes. The pet times his spells such that the mob spends a lot of time doing nothing, which is probably how the pet keeps itself alive so well, and it can seem like the mob is mezzed.

[Pins]

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Ardnahoy wrote:

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Seffrid wrote:

I know our pets usually cast Root for themselves,  but do they ever mez? I haven't noticed that they do.

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I have never seen my pet cast mez. He usually casts root, stun, AoE stun, and some nukes. Root has a stun component, and so does one of our nukes. The pet times his spells such that the mob spends a lot of time doing nothing, which is probably how the pet keeps itself alive so well, and it can seem like the mob is mezzed.

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Our root does not have a stun component nor does the pet's. it has a stifle component that is instantly broken upon any damage. The pet does not time his spells worth a [expletive haxx0red by Raijinn] at all. He just spams whatever is up at the time. Pet casting ability is pretty [Removed for Content] compared to what a real player could do with stun/daze timing with a 2nd player.

[Ardnahoy]

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Pinski wrote:

Our root does not have a stun component nor does the pet's. it has a stifle component that is instantly broken upon any damage. The pet does not time his spells worth a [expletive haxx0red by Raijinn] at all. He just spams whatever is up at the time. Pet casting ability is pretty [Removed for Content] compared to what a real player could do with stun/daze timing with a 2nd player.

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That is correct, the root does have a stifle component. When the pet starts his battery of spellcasting, he almost always starts with a root. Beyond melee range, a stifled and rooted mob is as good as stunned. I was just trying to be brief when I wrote that it was a stun when in fact it is not, but in practice, it does act like a stun at least from the beginning of the fight.

Granted, in a longish fight, the spell timers get crazy, but from the onset of a fight, the series of spells he casts is reliably similar. He roots the mob from beyond the mob's melee range (thus "stunning" it), follows up with an AoE stun (even on single targets), runs into melee range, drops a single target stun, and then throws in a couple of nukes. This cycle is roughly repeated, as you said, depending on recast timers.

Yes, it is not as good as a real player's choice of spellcasting, but it is pretty effective for canned AI. Instead of DPS, the pet basically spends his time keeping the mob stunned and stifled as long as possible.

[Fael]

So far Im soloing almost as well as my necromancers, and probably better than my conjurers now that Ive got down the illusionist spells a bit better.I found it is much better to time your spells with what the pet has cast so you can keep mobs stunned and stifled more of the time.  Illusionists dont put out the damage that necros and conjurers do, and their pets are not nearly as tough, but with decent timing you can take on some encounters better.  But for ease of play and fast leveling necros and conjurers are better for soloing.

[Ardnahoy]

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Faelos wrote:
So far Im soloing almost as well as my necromancers, and probably better than my conjurers now that Ive got down the illusionist spells a bit better.

I found it is much better to time your spells with what the pet has cast so you can keep mobs stunned and stifled more of the time. 

Illusionists dont put out the damage that necros and conjurers do, and their pets are not nearly as tough, but with decent timing you can take on some encounters better.  But for ease of play and fast leveling necros and conjurers are better for soloing.

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Very true. For the easy stuff, summoners can tear stuff up way more efficiently. They definately level faster.

But, don't try soloing those blue ^^^ or higher heroics, especially the grouped ones, with a summoner.