So last night, it took me all of about 20 minutes of toying on the PTS to know that Bolt Escape is obsolete now. It has no place on my bar and i simply will not use it as better and more feasible options exist now to do what it done previously.

All those crying for nerfs to this skill cried for the wrong nerf, and math is not hard. there is ZERO reason to even bother using Bolt Escape or any of its morphs from a cost to benefit analysis .Why would anyone go to Footlocker and buy a pair of shoes for 175 dollars when he can go to Finish Line and buy the exact same pair of shoes for 110 bucks...he isn't...he is not going to pay 65 dollars more for the same pair of shoes...its doesn't make sense, its not logical, its irrational. I'll try my best to break this down as easily and as least painful as possible.

Overview of Bolt Escape

1. Streak offer pretty much zero defensive utility - Streak has never offered any sort of defense or damage mitigation, and was clearly a full bore offensive move. It was very good in this role prior to 1.6, but in 1.6 they changed the disoreint to a stun and it now no longer generates ultimate. This in conjuction with the damage nerf it got in 1.6 and now the increased cost to use IMO simply makes it unfeasible for a caster as it offers no defensive utility whatsoever as it mitigates no damage, you can be hit while streaking, it doesn't even work as a repositioning tool for a ranged caster due to its now obscene amount of drawbacks in the form of nerfs. I can only see Streak being really good for a Stamina Sorc who is going to be up close and personal in melee and is obviously not wearing Light Armor. Streaking someone into a Crystal Frag is no longer any good because the Frag will no longer knock down due to Streak giving CC Immunity so since Streak is no longer a Disoreint, the synergy between it an Frags is no longer there for a caster making it counterproductive to go into melee range toe to toe with a Two handed melee user in mostly Light Armor even if you do have damage shields.

2. Ball of Lighting - This skill now offers no real defensive utility at all anymore This pretty much sums it up. I would concede that 6.5 secs was a bit long, but 1.5 secs makes the skill absolutely useless and in essence gives it no defensive utility at all. It shows me ZOS doesn't play their own game much because the majority of BOL users used the skill as I did, and guys like Teargrants and Ezareth did (Which was using the skill to cast spells with a cast time against Crushing Shock users). You can no longer stand behind your balls and cast against a Crushing Shock user, Crushing Shock is already one of if not the most mana efficient to damage done spells in the game, and it also interrupts anything with a cast time...the only counters to it are Reflective Scales, Ball of Lighting, or Immovable/Imove Pots. Ball of Lighting is now no longer a counter as its simply impossible now to cast against a competent Crushing Shock user now with the current state of BOL.

This is a direct buff to Crushing Shock that was already really powerful. The fact blocking Crushing Shock is counted as blocking 3 attacks, just further boosts the skill. Coupled with the Cost increase, the inability to cast behind your balls, if you insist on using Bolt Escape just use the base version now, it offers the same defensive utility as BOL does now(None), keeps the AOE stun at the starting position, but will save you a skill point for something else because 1.5 secs is not long enough to turn around and even cast a spell with a 1 sec cast time, let alone anything longer.

Ball of Lighting/Bolt Escape was nerfed for the wrong reasons and is misguided as Healing Ward was the real culprit why people were having so much trouble with some Sorc's in the game.

The Road Moving Forward for Caster Sorc's

It didn't take me long either to realize that better options exist for Sorc's now to get close to the same defensive utility they got out of Ball of Lighting at a far lesser overall cost.

1. Invisibility Potions - Its trivial to make Invisibility potions that last 40 secs and grant 15 secs of invis and 40 secs of Major Expedition. These potions are now better then Bolt Escape in every single way and are actually more annoying then Ball of Lighting ever was as "Now you see the Sorc, now you don't". I have used these to quite literally have a DK have me one minute and flame whipping air the next. I can cover far more ground, I can't be targeted by any Single Target spells, and outside of Magelight/Detect Pots you are gone, pretty much guaranteed, and with the way the IPC is laid out in urban warfare, i see no reason to use Bolt Escape over these. For the 1 time you don't get away with these pots, 9 other times you will. These pots also don't have penalties associated with their use.
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2. Vampire This will probably end up being the most popular option. Mist Form is now better then Bolt Escape in every way. Its much cheaper, it can be spammed, it mitigates 75% of all damage, and its Speed Buff will allow you to actually cover more distance in one cast then BE does in a single teleport. Elusive Mist will now offer a 10% stamina and magic regen for being slotted giving me even more reason to choose it over Bolt Escape and its penalities. Mist Form flat out offers better survivability now for a cheaper cost so Sorcs are going to flock to Vamp more so then other classes. Combine this with much better stealth speed movement, Undeath Passive, and the reduction to not only fire damage, but the buffs to Ice and Lighting Staffs make this even more appealing. Clouding Swarm will also offer Sorc's a form of invisibility making up for the loss of BOL defensive protection measures against Crushing Shock users. Retreating Manauvers + Elusive Mist will prevent you from being CC, rooted, or snared all but ensuring you can create distance if need be without sucking your mana pool dry in a new york minute.

Overall your better off going Vampire then investing in gear specifics to Bolt Escape more. Bolt Escape no longer offers any defensive utility for a caster because it really no longer mitigates damage, is longer a viable counter to Crushing Shock, and Mist Form or an Invis potion is a better defensive repositioning tool for a caster. The fact if i fire a Frag at you and you cast BOL after i cast the Frag, the Frag will ignore your 1.5 sec Ball and still hit you in the back, by the time the next projectile comes that ball is expired, with Mist Form you will hardly take any damage and won't be stunned or knocked down....this makes sense to me all the way around from magic costs right down to survivability odds, Bolt Escape no longer compares to Mist Form if living is your cup of tea. Far better defensive repositioning skills and potions exist now that will be far better in accomplishing what BOL/Bolt Escape currently does on live for a defensive caster class.The fact Streak no longer generates ultimate makes it a losing proposition no matter how you shake it, and the fact a Proced Frag will not Stun/Knock down someone you have Streaked through pretty much kills any synergy Streak has for a caster class for me. At this point, just become a vamp and replace


I look forward to the thoughts, comments, and mostly like L2P comments. I prefer to be efficient and Elusive Mist is a far better use of spending my magic resources on then Bolt Escape is now, and it also doesn't penalize me for using it. Bolt Escape is simply no longer a better option then other means that are available. This is the definition of making a skill useless IMO...i'll gladly use skills that do nearly the same thing but are far cheaper and don't penalize me, its just makes sense. As i said above...why spend more on a pair of shoes at one store when i cna get them far cheaper across the street....Bolt Escape is now the Exon gas station that is across the street from the Pilot gas station that is selling gas for 7 cents per gallon cheaper then Exon....we all know how that will work out for Exon.