by Dalmarus on May 16, 2008
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By Dalmarus
With the recent revamp the Druids received in Game Update #4, they've
gone from being an average Arcane Caster to having a shot at taking the
title. While I like to tease them about being "wanna-be necros",
there's no denying the new and improved versions can deal the heat.
They have the ability to stack multiple damage-over-time spells (DOTs),
possess some impressive snares, and some serious direct damage
(DD) capabilities. On top of all this, they also have the best healing
abilities out of the other contenders to round out their pile
of skills. Don't forget that while their pets may not be as strong as a
necromancer's, it's just one more thing to add to their damage per
second (DPS) rating.
Ignoring for a moment the fact that I'm a little more than biased
towards the Necromancer class, there is no denying that a single
Necromancer is an adversary to be feared. Not only do they have an
enormous amount of DOTs they can stack for arguably the most
sustainable DPS in the game, they also have a number of ways to avoid
the icy grip of death. They can feign death, mez targets, or send their
targets running away at light speed. Combine this with the toughest pet
in Vanguard, the ability to resurrect corpses to fight for them, and an
impressive array of possible minions, and you have a serious contender
on your hands.
If there was ever a class that was in desperate need of the fabled
revamp, it's the Psionicist. Fortunately for them, that revamp is
coming in Game Update #5. Unfortunately for them, that's not in time
for this poll, so they may be at a severe disadvantage. Aside from all
this though, a well-played Psionicist can pump out a respectable amount
of DPS. While you may not consider one the Master of Crowd Control that
they should be, they do have a decent amount of crowd control
capabilities. When all else fails, they also have a number of escape
plans, ranging from increased speed bursts, invisibility, and more.
The sorcerer may be an agro-grabbing, tissue-paper-wearing, pain in the
rear for many parties throughout Vanguard, but no other class can dish
out the same burst DPS they can. This may make soloing a bit of a
hassle at some points in their careers, but now imagine 6 Sorcerers
unleashing that massive assault on a single target. Mitigation and agro
management may be important to the rest of us, but if the mob were dead
before it knows it was even hit, would it really matter?
You have only one Arcane Caster class to make up an entire party - what
is it?