The Elementalist

Leaving little to the imagination, the Rift Elementalist is master of the four elements. Part of their prowess and power is derived from their summoned combat pets that serve a variety of roles. If any of the various souls in Rift is custom made for the old school EverQuest mage; this is it.

Pros

• Highly versatile soul
• A pet for every situation
• Decent damage output
• Pairs well with other souls

Cons

• Glass cannon without their pets
• Lacks group synergy
• Boring DPS rotation

Overview

The Elementalist is a DPS soul that relies on combat pets and a pretty straight forward approach to damage to get it done in Telara, no sneaky drains or DoTs here. The first pet that is ripped from the alternate planes that surround the world is the Earth Elemental – a tanking pet with moderate threat generation abilities. The second pet in the arsenal is the Air Elemental, a DPS pet that is the perfect companion choice when in a group that has a dedicated tank. The final elemental available, and one that is unlocked fairly deep in the root tree is the Greater Water Elemental – a crowd control specialist that finds most of its work in PvP, but can come in handy in dungeons as well.

 

Solo Play

The Elementalist is the perfect solo soul for the Mage calling as their excellent pets and moderate damage output are well suited for a quick leveling experience. In addition to the summoned friends, the Elementalist has several other great survivability abilities; including a root, a damage shield, damage reduction and a self heal. The Elementalist also possesses a rather solid mana regen mechanic that can help minimize any downtime.

Group Play

Elementalists will also find themselves welcomed into groups as their damage output is good and they are fairly self sufficient. Although they lack the utility of other Mage souls that specialize in crowd-control or buffing, the Elementalist can prove invaluable when things hit the fan and their pets can be called upon to reorder the chaos.

Pairs Best With

Stormcaller

Similar in many ways, the Stormcaller and the Elementalist are a nice match without being a complete duplication of abilities. Using the power of wind and water, the Stormcaller has several abilities and talents that increase the Elementalists abilities as well as adding some powerful single target and AoE snares.

Pyromancer

Usually when I recommend a pairing with Pyromancer it is always implied to be the dominate soul, not so when mating it with an Elementalist. Using the Pyro as a secondary or even tertiary soul will help create a much more powerful pet class build with talents that significantly increase the fire damage done by the Elementalist.