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[PvE Sorcerer Tank Build 2.0.8] - The Storm Beast
I posted this on Tamriel Foundry but wanted to get some more feedback. I've tested this through VR5 and so far it's sick. I'd actually argue (I'm sure many will disagree) that Sorc Tank is the second best tanking class right now (behind DK) but absolutely the most fun to play. We have CC (Restraining Prison). We have armor buffs (not unique but it's there) which looks dope and provides speed Boundless Storm). Self heal when you unsummon your Clanfear - and oh yea, that little guy is a sick off tank. Some really nice passives too - 20% health regen with a daedric summoning skill slotted (Clanfear). Redued magicka and stam costs. Increased magicka regen. A bunch of others. Quick note about the self heal - yes Templar has Breath of Life (obviously an amazing skill) but when you're in a bind, unsummoning your pet is free - no magicka cost. And you're a tank, you shouldn't be healing the group. Anyway, I could make more arguments but check this out and share your thoughts.
I also have a detailed leveling guide too on tanking and two handed leveling 1-50. (http://tamrielfoundry.com/topic/storm-beast-sorcerer-tanking-and-leveling-build-2-0-7/).
Disclaimer: This is only tested as of VR5 BUT I’ve done vet dungeons at VR12 on other characters and am confident this would work well throughout the vet dungeon experience (maybe using Footman’s instead of Night’s Silence). I’ve never done DSA or Trials so I can’t speak for how it would work there (if anyone has any recommended sorc tank builds for those, I’d love to read them). Here I will only focus on the Tanking portion of the build at VR5.
I’m a casual player and am not familiar with min/max builds so take this for what it is. Would love any and all feedback!
THE STORM BEAST
Race: Imperial
Class: Sorcerer (obviously)
Attributes: All Points in Health.
Armor: 5 Heavy Histbark (Head, Chest, Legs, Hands & Waist) & 2 Medium Night’s Silence (Feet and Shoulders). Adds armor, health, health regen, stamina, stam regen and of course the 5 pc bonus of 18% dodge chance. Divines on Chest, Helm and Legs. Doesn’t really matter on the others (increase armor % or enchantment % or resistance to critical strikes are probably good).
Shield: Night’s Silence. If you don’t have access to craft this, it’s not a big deal. I did the first dungeon with a regular +Health shield I found and it was fine. Having the 3 pc bonus though is good for adding stam regen.
Weapon: One-Handed. I personally just bought whatever purple one handed weapons were available in the guild store but if you’re so inclined, craft a <i>Night’s Silence</i> sword. Otherwise, buy an epic or use one from a boss drop once you get.
Glyphs: The white vendor glyphs work just fine. I put stam on the chest, legs, feet and shield, and magicka on the rest. If you find you need a little more magicka, enchant another one of your small armor pieces. Generally I had a 2:3 Magicka:Stamina ratio going.
Jewelry – I bought block cost reduction jewelry. Not expensive. Clasp of the Dragon and Speaker’s Band. If you have an enchanter or can buy a glyph and prefer to use a jewelry set (warlock might be interesting to give some magicka regen) then enchant with block reduction.
Champion Points – I don’t have a crazy amount of CPs (about 25 per Constellation). Thief: Warlord (Tower) – Reduces the stamina costs of abilities
Mage: Precise Strikes (Ritual) – Increase Weapon Crit (mainly because I'm also leveling my character - maybe would switch at VR14 when I go pure tank)
Warrior: Block Expertise (Steed) – Reduces cost of blocking
Mundus: The Tower (+Stam)
Infection: Lycanthropy – +15% passive stam regen in combat while in humanoid form with no penalty. Really easy to level up too so you can make some decent gold selling WW bites once a week.
The Build
Bar 1 (One Hand and Shield)
Skill 1: Absorb Magic
Skill 2: Ransack
Skill 3: Boundless Storm
Skill 4: Unstable Clanfear*
Skill 5: Shielded Assault
Ultimate: Absorption Field
Bar 2 (One Hand and Shield)
Skill 1: Inner Rage
Skill 2: Restraining Prison
Skill 3: Heroic Slash
Skill 4: Unstable Clanfear
Skill 5: Bone Shield/Degeneration
Ultimate: Summon Greater Storm Atronach
Skill Choices Explained
Boundless Storm (as opposed to Thundering Presence morph) – I’m sure Thundering Presence is great (most people prefer it) but I find the speed buff to be way more useful than a few extra seconds before recasting. The battlefield mobility it provides is perfect for getting to enemies quick in the middle of hectic fights.
Ransack (as opposed to Pierce Armor morph). I like the added armor from this. I don’t use Bound Armor (or morphs) so it’s a nice added buff. Also, most of the time a DD is going to apply the debuffs that Pierce Armor does so you don’t need to.
Absorb Magic (as opposed to Defensive Posture morph) – As a Sorcerer we lack many self-healing options. Being able to absorb caster’s magic and heal ourselves comes in very handy for those AoE pulls (and boss fights). Either morph would work though, I’m sure. Also, slot this on your main bar because it provides both a passive 8% increase in damage blocked and an 8% reduction in block cost.
Unstable Clanfear (as opposed to Bound Armor) – In my leveling guide I used Bound Armor but if I had to do it again, I’d use Unstable Clanfear instead. First, the armor buff from Bound Armor isn’t that significant. Second, the Daedric Protection passive (20% health regen with a Daedric Summon spell is slotteD) is activated using Unstable Clanfear. Most importantly, there are two great utilities here: (1) really good self-heal when you unsummon it and (2) built-in off tank. The built-in off tank works great on AoE pulls and also for adds during boss fights. The clanfear can really hold its own. Definitely worth slotting on both bars.
Inner Rage (as opposed to Inner Beast) – First, this skill, regardless of morph, is great because it’s a ranged taunt. I prefer Inner Rage because it’s nice having both a stamina taunt (Ransack) and Magicka taunt (Inner Rage). If you’re too low on stam and need to taunt, use Inner Rage. Also great for pulling mobs off of the healer/ranged dps while you’re in the middle of a pack of mobs.
Restraining Prison – Sorcerer’s version of the DK’s talons. Main difference is that you cast it in front of you (as opposed to a circle around you like Talons). With the Dark Magic passives, it last 5.4 seconds (maybe more once it’s level IV, I’m not sure). This is your main CC spell. The Restraining Prison morph snares the mobs after the roots disappear. Also, with the Exploitation passive in Dark Magic, allies get Minor Prophecy buff for 20 seconds when cast and you’re healed 8% for each enemy hit via Blood Magic passive.
Heroic Slash – Reduces target’s damage by 15% and generates additional ultimate.
Bone Shield (as opposed to Hardened Ward) – I haven’t leveled it enough to morph yet and I’m not sure which one I’ll take. In my leveling guide I wasn’t sure which I preferred, Bone Shield or Hardened Ward, but I am sold on Bone Shield for a few reasons. Yes, it only last 6 seconds, but I don’t find that to be a problem in terms of resource management. I pop this only when I really need to OR when my allies need the synergy. The synergy grants allies 60% of their health in a damage shield. This is HUGE when they’re coming under heavy attack from physical damage mobs. Also, the damage shield amount is higher for yourself with this than Hardened Ward.
Degeneration - (when not using Bone Shield) - nice to add some HoT on yourself. Place instead of Bone Shield if the situation calls for it.
Absorption Field (as opposed to Suppression Field) – AoE silence and stun. This morph grants movement speed and resource generation to allies within radius. I’m going to try Suppression Field as that sounds like it’s useful for Tanking too. The group seems to like the resource generation buffs though.
Summon Greater Storm Atronach - Great for added DPS – especially for AoE pulls. If you’re group isn’t taking heavy damage, use this.
How to Use This Build
This assumes you understand general tanking practices in ESO but I’ll outline some of the basics as I understand them here. Again, I’m a casual player so if there’s anything anyone disagrees with or has feedback on, feel free to share. I’m always looking to improve.
Basic tanking rules I follow: (1) Don’t taunt everything – taunt the highest threat mobs; (2) keep your healer protected at almost all costs; (3) keep your armor buffs on as often as possible; (4) Heavy Attack often (it returns Stamina); (5) try to only block heavy attacks – light attacks won’t do too much harm (unless there are a ton of mobs) and it quickly drains stamina; (6) Don’t stand in the red (unless it’s a mechanic where you won’t die and it doesn’t make sense for you to dodge roll out); (7) Don’t be afraid to dodge roll; (8) Don’t be afraid to use Shield Assault; (9) Use potions early and often; (10) Use Heroic Slash every 8 seconds (or as close to that as you can); (11) Be engaged and aware of your surroundings; (12) Stand in any circular protection zones (Purifying Ritual, Circle of Protection, etc…) if they’re cast.
General practices for the Storm Beast Sorcerer Tank: (1) Keep Boundless Storm up almost at all times during fights; (2) Use Restraining Prison on AoE packs. Sometimes you’ll have to aim for the left side and then to the right to get all mobs – it’s ok to cast twice; (3) Keep your Clanfear summoned at all times (unless you have no magicka to recast after you’ve unsummoned for a self heal); (4) Unsummon Clanfear when you need a self heal; (5) Use your magicka taunt if you’re low on Stamina; (6) Use Bone Shield when there’s heavy damage coming in – try to cast it near your allies so they can activate the synergy; (7) Remember to Heavy Attack often to keep Stam up; (8) Cast Restraining Prison (even on boss) for an 8% self heal per enemy hit.
Edited by Storm_Beast on May 16, 2015 11:53PM I also have a detailed leveling guide too on tanking and two handed leveling 1-50. (http://tamrielfoundry.com/topic/storm-beast-sorcerer-tanking-and-leveling-build-2-0-7/).
Disclaimer: This is only tested as of VR5 BUT I’ve done vet dungeons at VR12 on other characters and am confident this would work well throughout the vet dungeon experience (maybe using Footman’s instead of Night’s Silence). I’ve never done DSA or Trials so I can’t speak for how it would work there (if anyone has any recommended sorc tank builds for those, I’d love to read them). Here I will only focus on the Tanking portion of the build at VR5.
I’m a casual player and am not familiar with min/max builds so take this for what it is. Would love any and all feedback!
THE STORM BEAST
Race: Imperial
Class: Sorcerer (obviously)
Attributes: All Points in Health.
Armor: 5 Heavy Histbark (Head, Chest, Legs, Hands & Waist) & 2 Medium Night’s Silence (Feet and Shoulders). Adds armor, health, health regen, stamina, stam regen and of course the 5 pc bonus of 18% dodge chance. Divines on Chest, Helm and Legs. Doesn’t really matter on the others (increase armor % or enchantment % or resistance to critical strikes are probably good).
Shield: Night’s Silence. If you don’t have access to craft this, it’s not a big deal. I did the first dungeon with a regular +Health shield I found and it was fine. Having the 3 pc bonus though is good for adding stam regen.
Weapon: One-Handed. I personally just bought whatever purple one handed weapons were available in the guild store but if you’re so inclined, craft a <i>Night’s Silence</i> sword. Otherwise, buy an epic or use one from a boss drop once you get.
Glyphs: The white vendor glyphs work just fine. I put stam on the chest, legs, feet and shield, and magicka on the rest. If you find you need a little more magicka, enchant another one of your small armor pieces. Generally I had a 2:3 Magicka:Stamina ratio going.
Jewelry – I bought block cost reduction jewelry. Not expensive. Clasp of the Dragon and Speaker’s Band. If you have an enchanter or can buy a glyph and prefer to use a jewelry set (warlock might be interesting to give some magicka regen) then enchant with block reduction.
Champion Points – I don’t have a crazy amount of CPs (about 25 per Constellation). Thief: Warlord (Tower) – Reduces the stamina costs of abilities
Mage: Precise Strikes (Ritual) – Increase Weapon Crit (mainly because I'm also leveling my character - maybe would switch at VR14 when I go pure tank)
Warrior: Block Expertise (Steed) – Reduces cost of blocking
Mundus: The Tower (+Stam)
Infection: Lycanthropy – +15% passive stam regen in combat while in humanoid form with no penalty. Really easy to level up too so you can make some decent gold selling WW bites once a week.
The Build
Bar 1 (One Hand and Shield)
Skill 1: Absorb Magic
Skill 2: Ransack
Skill 3: Boundless Storm
Skill 4: Unstable Clanfear*
Skill 5: Shielded Assault
Ultimate: Absorption Field
Bar 2 (One Hand and Shield)
Skill 1: Inner Rage
Skill 2: Restraining Prison
Skill 3: Heroic Slash
Skill 4: Unstable Clanfear
Skill 5: Bone Shield/Degeneration
Ultimate: Summon Greater Storm Atronach
Skill Choices Explained
Boundless Storm (as opposed to Thundering Presence morph) – I’m sure Thundering Presence is great (most people prefer it) but I find the speed buff to be way more useful than a few extra seconds before recasting. The battlefield mobility it provides is perfect for getting to enemies quick in the middle of hectic fights.
Ransack (as opposed to Pierce Armor morph). I like the added armor from this. I don’t use Bound Armor (or morphs) so it’s a nice added buff. Also, most of the time a DD is going to apply the debuffs that Pierce Armor does so you don’t need to.
Absorb Magic (as opposed to Defensive Posture morph) – As a Sorcerer we lack many self-healing options. Being able to absorb caster’s magic and heal ourselves comes in very handy for those AoE pulls (and boss fights). Either morph would work though, I’m sure. Also, slot this on your main bar because it provides both a passive 8% increase in damage blocked and an 8% reduction in block cost.
Unstable Clanfear (as opposed to Bound Armor) – In my leveling guide I used Bound Armor but if I had to do it again, I’d use Unstable Clanfear instead. First, the armor buff from Bound Armor isn’t that significant. Second, the Daedric Protection passive (20% health regen with a Daedric Summon spell is slotteD) is activated using Unstable Clanfear. Most importantly, there are two great utilities here: (1) really good self-heal when you unsummon it and (2) built-in off tank. The built-in off tank works great on AoE pulls and also for adds during boss fights. The clanfear can really hold its own. Definitely worth slotting on both bars.
Inner Rage (as opposed to Inner Beast) – First, this skill, regardless of morph, is great because it’s a ranged taunt. I prefer Inner Rage because it’s nice having both a stamina taunt (Ransack) and Magicka taunt (Inner Rage). If you’re too low on stam and need to taunt, use Inner Rage. Also great for pulling mobs off of the healer/ranged dps while you’re in the middle of a pack of mobs.
Restraining Prison – Sorcerer’s version of the DK’s talons. Main difference is that you cast it in front of you (as opposed to a circle around you like Talons). With the Dark Magic passives, it last 5.4 seconds (maybe more once it’s level IV, I’m not sure). This is your main CC spell. The Restraining Prison morph snares the mobs after the roots disappear. Also, with the Exploitation passive in Dark Magic, allies get Minor Prophecy buff for 20 seconds when cast and you’re healed 8% for each enemy hit via Blood Magic passive.
Heroic Slash – Reduces target’s damage by 15% and generates additional ultimate.
Bone Shield (as opposed to Hardened Ward) – I haven’t leveled it enough to morph yet and I’m not sure which one I’ll take. In my leveling guide I wasn’t sure which I preferred, Bone Shield or Hardened Ward, but I am sold on Bone Shield for a few reasons. Yes, it only last 6 seconds, but I don’t find that to be a problem in terms of resource management. I pop this only when I really need to OR when my allies need the synergy. The synergy grants allies 60% of their health in a damage shield. This is HUGE when they’re coming under heavy attack from physical damage mobs. Also, the damage shield amount is higher for yourself with this than Hardened Ward.
Degeneration - (when not using Bone Shield) - nice to add some HoT on yourself. Place instead of Bone Shield if the situation calls for it.
Absorption Field (as opposed to Suppression Field) – AoE silence and stun. This morph grants movement speed and resource generation to allies within radius. I’m going to try Suppression Field as that sounds like it’s useful for Tanking too. The group seems to like the resource generation buffs though.
Summon Greater Storm Atronach - Great for added DPS – especially for AoE pulls. If you’re group isn’t taking heavy damage, use this.
How to Use This Build
This assumes you understand general tanking practices in ESO but I’ll outline some of the basics as I understand them here. Again, I’m a casual player so if there’s anything anyone disagrees with or has feedback on, feel free to share. I’m always looking to improve.
Basic tanking rules I follow: (1) Don’t taunt everything – taunt the highest threat mobs; (2) keep your healer protected at almost all costs; (3) keep your armor buffs on as often as possible; (4) Heavy Attack often (it returns Stamina); (5) try to only block heavy attacks – light attacks won’t do too much harm (unless there are a ton of mobs) and it quickly drains stamina; (6) Don’t stand in the red (unless it’s a mechanic where you won’t die and it doesn’t make sense for you to dodge roll out); (7) Don’t be afraid to dodge roll; (8) Don’t be afraid to use Shield Assault; (9) Use potions early and often; (10) Use Heroic Slash every 8 seconds (or as close to that as you can); (11) Be engaged and aware of your surroundings; (12) Stand in any circular protection zones (Purifying Ritual, Circle of Protection, etc…) if they’re cast.
General practices for the Storm Beast Sorcerer Tank: (1) Keep Boundless Storm up almost at all times during fights; (2) Use Restraining Prison on AoE packs. Sometimes you’ll have to aim for the left side and then to the right to get all mobs – it’s ok to cast twice; (3) Keep your Clanfear summoned at all times (unless you have no magicka to recast after you’ve unsummoned for a self heal); (4) Unsummon Clanfear when you need a self heal; (5) Use your magicka taunt if you’re low on Stamina; (6) Use Bone Shield when there’s heavy damage coming in – try to cast it near your allies so they can activate the synergy; (7) Remember to Heavy Attack often to keep Stam up; (8) Cast Restraining Prison (even on boss) for an 8% self heal per enemy hit.
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I got very little (though much appreciated) feedback when I posted on Tamriel Foundry a little bit ago - just wondering, is anyone out there still playing Sorc Tanks? Is there still a general consensus (at least in VR14 content, DSA, Trials, etc...) that Sorc Tanks are not welcome in groups? Genuinely curious about end game viability bc this build kicks a** in vet dungeons.0
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Lord Xanhorn✭✭✭✭Honestly tanking in this game is the least important role. You could do it with any class effectively. If you have good dps and a decent healer, the tank is just there to make sure the big boys don't 1 shot the squishies. This is weird since most other games that use the trinity, the tank is usually the most important role. Battlefield control and initiating fights correctly, using LOS etc.
In almost all MMOs I play tanks but in this game, they just aren't that fun. Healing is much more dynamic and fun.
All that to say, Sorc tanks are just as good as any other tank in doing any content in this game. Their damage shields are second to none and talons honestly just isnt that important anymore.I'm kind of a small deal!0 -
Resipsa131✭✭✭Can you hold aggro in runs? I'd almost argue you'd be better off with atronach as your ultimate rather than bubble.0 -
Dracane✭✭✭✭✭
✭✭✭✭✭Storm_Beast wrote: »Restraining Prison – when cast and you’re healed 8% for each enemy hit via Blood Magic passive.
Sadly no. It only heals you per cast. You only get healed for 8% per restraining prison cast, no matter how many enemies you hit. This is because there is a cooldown on the Blood Magic passive.
For example when casting daedric mines: If your enemy rolls through all of them or through a few, all of them can explode, but you ponly receive 1 heal, because there is a 1 second cooldown on blood magic. If your enemy steps on them one by one, you get healed for each mine.
But since restraining prison hits the enemies at the same time, you only receive 1 heal tick. I'm not sure, if this is intended or not, but it's this way since the game exists and I'm pretty sure, it's intended -.-Auri-El is my lord,
Trinimac is my shield,
Magnus is my mind.0