You Must Choose: Sorcerer or Wizard?

By Ralsu



You're playing Dungeons & Dragons
Online: Stormreach (DDO) and your party has one slot left. Your
neighbor plays a cleric (whew!). You found a rogue. Your warrior and
another supplies the meat and damage. You just added a barbarian. One
slot left. You want a caster. You check the LFG (looking for group
social panel) and see a sorcerer and wizard of the same level. What
will you do?




The
Case for the Sorcerer

Sorcerers are kings of raw damage. When I think of casters, I think of
damage. With a higher pool of spell points and faster cast times, that
sorcerer will do a lot more for my party. We'll kill faster, which
means we'll progress faster. And that means more XP. We won't hit the
middle of the dungeon and find that our caster is out of spell points
and has to melee feebly or shoot a bow with all of the accuracy of
cyclops.



Simply put, sorcerers are faster, more prolific, and more efficient
than wizards. I'm picking up the sorcerer from the LFG, and my party
will be better for it.



The Case for the Wizard

Wizards are so versatile; they can do almost anything. They can buff
(boost the party's capabilities through the use of spells), do crowd
control, and even offer some damage. The beauty of wizards is that they
are not limited in what they can do. A smart wizard select spells
carefully and conserves spell points. While a sorcerer is busy nuking
with Ball Lightning and burning through spell points, a wizard can lay
down the appropriate crowd control spell and let the heavy hitters do
their jobs. Nevermind that a wizard can be slower in casting. A good
player will anticipate the needs of his party and get the job done.
Once we hit a rest shrine, the wizard can swap spells to fit our needs.



Simply put, wizards are more capable, more useful, and more adaptable
than sorcerers. I'm picking up the sorcerer from the LFG, and my party
will be better for it.



href="http://ddo.tentonhammer.com/modules.php?set_albumName=Exclusive_Screenshots&id=suggestion&op=modload&name=Gallery&file=index&include=view_photo.php"> alt="Suggestion"
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style="border: 2px solid ; width: 267px; height: 200px;" align="left"> style="font-weight: bold;">The Case for Either

A caster is a caster. Sorcerers can do most anything wizards can if
they are smart about it. Wands can help a sorcerer get access to more
spells. It all comes down to player skill and personality. If the
player behind the caster is skilled, either class can get it done.



Simply put, sorcerers and wizards are only as good as the people who
play them. I'll take either one so long as the player is skilled.



The Case for Neither

I don't see the need for a "squishy finger-wiggler" in this case. DDO
doesn't require a perfect party of archetypes. The role of a caster can
be filled by a rogue or bard with a high UMD. Or I can just take
another melee character for faster kills without having to worry about
a death every time the person takes damage. For that matter, I could
take another cleric and have a party of capable fighters with plenty of
healing.



Simply put, leave the sorcerer and wizard on LFG. I'll take another
class, and my party will be better for it.

---

This week is Week of the Arcane
Master at DDO @ Ten Ton Hammer. We've got reviews of 5th level href="http://ddo.tentonhammer.com/index.php?module=ContentExpress&func=display&ceid=261">arcane
spells, guides to href="http://ddo.tentonhammer.com/index.php?module=ContentExpress&func=display&ceid=109">advanced
spellcasting tactics, and href="http://ddo.tentonhammer.com/index.php?module=ContentExpress&func=display&ceid=152">Custom
Builds that focus on the arcane arts. What we want to know is this:
If your party has only one slot empty with no casters, do you prefer a
wizard or a sorcerer?
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For my last slot in a party without a caster, I want:

• Sorcerer! A sorcerer's deep pool of spell points means that
  she can do some heavy damage for the party.
• Wizard! A wizard's versatility means that he can do more
  for the party.
• Either. So long as the player has skill, each class has
  something to offer.
• Neither. I'd rather have another melee or healer.