Looking for advice on vMA Magsorc build

Aztlan · December 2017

First a disclaimer, I know vMA is all about learning the mechanics and avoiding mistakes, and that the build is secondary. I have been following Joy's guide (thank you Joy!) and have struggled through rounds 1-8. After countless hours and hundreds of deaths, I have managed to get past the crystal phase of round 9 (although i did have to jump down and go back up twice to do it). However, I am frustrated that I don't seem to have enough dps to just burn down the boss afterwards, even though I placed my dots (too slow, missed one maybe?) and hit him with my Storm. He drops from something like 57k to 30k, and then I have to deal with the insane spawning of another round of adds. Is there anything I can do to increase my dps to avoid this, without vMA weapons obviously?

I am 690CP and am basically running Alcast's Summoner build (5 Necropotence, 5 Julianos, 1 Domihaus). Skills are Hardened Ward, Force Shock, Crystal Frags, Crit Surge, Volatile Familiar, Meteor // Blockade of Shock, Liquid Lightning, Daedric Prey, Lightning Form, Volatile Familiar, Elemental Rage. Spell damage with Major Sorcery is around 3100, and my stats are roughly 41k Magicka, 18k Health, 10k Stamina with Witchmothers Brew. This is a new character, so no Undaunted passives.

Should I switch up my build (Netch's Touch for Necro?) or just keep hammering away, hoping not to screw up that final wave of adds? Should I try running it on my main, a stamNB, who had higher burst but is much squishier?

Thank you.

@Alcast @Joy_Division

Joy_Division · December 2017

You're build is good enough to get the job done. Sure, the extra Undaunted will help. But what I suspect is mostly the issue here is since this is your first time, you actual DPS is not reaching its potential because you are getting accustomed to the mechanics. The only thing I might consider changing is maybe switching out Hardened Ward for harness magicka. Harness is a big enough shield and the sustain will be much better.

Struggling in the earlier rounds is par for the course, so don't worry about that. 3 isn't easy until you get used to it. 4, 5, and 6 all have legit tough pulls. 7 is a nightmare because of the plants. And the final boss kills even some good players hundreds of times, humbling them to the point where some questioned their ESO competence.

As for the final stage specifically, DPSing the crystals is something of an art. There is a lot to do: dodging skulls, shielding/healing the damage, chasing walls, actually damaging the crystals and it takes a while to get the knack of it. Just to be clear, jumping down and going up a total of twice is something some players have found themselves doing until they get an efficient rhythm upstairs. I'm not quite sure what you mean by having to "jump down and go up twice." The key is to make sure elemental wall and liquie lightning are always down, and you learn how to still do dps while making sure you get behind a wall.

The safest way to kill final boss for your first clear is to hold off on your destro ultimate until the daedroth add spawns.
That way it dies without you having to do much effort. It takes quite a bit of DPS to flat out burn him and if you can't do this now, you're not going to learn it by say next weekend (because you build is already solid). Use the intended mechanic: get three gold ghosts, wait until the daedroth has spawned and is next to the boss, and then destro uli them. That in combination with our ground DoTs should kill the daedroth and give you the time you need to finish off the boss.

As a side note, I like to save the shield sigal just in case something goes wrong with a daedroth spawn on that last stage. you could miss a gold ghost or maybe you need a few more seconds to finish off the boss when the second daedroth spawns (note: still grab gold ghosts if boss is not almost dead after you use the first super stun).

Aztlan · December 2017

Thank you, Joy. You're the best. You have given me hope!

Haquor · January 2018

Juli, necro and 1 iceheart or domihaus i find is fine for gear. 2 pets. I use following build and i find it is safe with ample dps:

1: ward, blockade, volatile, matriarch, bound aegis, meteor
2: surge, LL, volatile, matriarch, bound aegis, thunderous rage

Drop both dots and volatile aoe then heavy attack for damage is plenty. Ward on front bar for quick application. Matriarch is for more passive dps and emergency heal and can be replaced with curse/frags on rear/front if you prefer and are confident.

Getting the three ghosts is key for me in the final phase. Generally keeping liquid lightning, blockade, and pet aoe on him is enough while i run around grabbing ghosts. Then when i use that synergy he is all but done. Remember tho... make sure you destroy that daedroth as priority even when the boss is close i find.

WrathOfInnos · January 2018

I think I'm a minority with this opinion, but I find vMA easier without pets. One thing that I find helps a lot is a Master Lightning Staff from vDSA. This allows shock clench or reach to be used as a spammable (it is too expensive without the Master staff, and the direct damage is low) and it knocks down anything it hits.

One clench followed by an endless fury (don't use Mage's wrath for vMA) is enough to kill most enemies. If you need to, follow the endless fury with a heavy attack while the clench DoT ticks and the endless fury will go off when they hit 20% health. All the while they will be stunned.

For bosses, I drop a wall of elements and liquid lightning. This also works well anytime a portal is about to open, the enemy will spawn into death trap.

Since this build is 100% lightning damage, the Netch's Touch set is a great option. Julianos also works excellently, and can be crafted in any weight for 5-1-1. Pairing the two 5-piece sets gives a to of spell damage, especially with the Apprentice stone. If you don't want to farm Netch or want a little more self-healing then Mothers Sorrow is a very close substitute for the Netch set.

My exact bars are:

Front (Master Lightning required): Shock Reach (clench is also fine), Empowered Ward (hardened also fine), Endless Fury, Inner Light, Bound Aegis, Shooting Star (for passives, not used)

Back (Maelstrom Lightning preferred): Liquid Lightning, Unstable Wall (blockade is fine), Power Surge, Inner Light, Bound Aegis, Elemental Rage

I'm not the best Sorc on the boards, but I've been able to pull of scores of 560-570k with this setup, and I don't really know the enemy spawns or any tricks to push scores. It is probably the easiest rotation possible, since it has only a few active skills. It also uses trash Magicka potions since Major Prophexy is provided by Inner light and Major Sorcery by Power Surge, so it does not cost you gold to run vMA.

I would also recommend blue health+Magicka food instead of Witchmother's. You will do more damage and have more health. With endless fury restoring Magicka on kills and the destruction passive that returns more Magicka you should be fine on sustain. Mix in some heavy attacks if necessary during bosses and the crystal phase up top for last boss.

If you like having a pet around, it can easily replace bound aegis, but I would still not recommend Necropotence. Mothers Sorrow buffs pets almost as much (since they crit) and also affects your other skills more (especially light and heavy attacks, that are nearly unaffected by max Magicka).

Hope this helps.