[Guide] Sorcerer

The Sorcerer forums are more barren than the rest of the other class forums, a few have requested for a refresher guide of some sort so here it is. Sorcerers are really (almost) straightforward to play in both aspects of PvE/PvP.

This isn't a full walkthrough, but just a mini-guide as to what you need to know as a sorcerer.

Stats

There are only a few stats sorcerers dabble into:

1. Magic Boost
For direct damage boosting, there is presently a cap of 2700 to this stat. As of 3.0, this cap has been increased to 3610.

2. Magic Accuracy
The counterpart of Accuracy, we add this stat to hit higher level mobs (more on PvP later)

3. HP
This one is a no brainer

4. Magic Resist
This stat allows resist of magic attacks (ie. godstones/debuffs/magic skills), this stat is used only in the PvP field

5. Crit Spell
The counterpart of critical hit, this stat is special as you can only stack more it via equipment and buffs

6. Strike Resist/Fortitude
The former decreases your rate of allow critical attacks to occur on you and the latter decreases the damage of critical attacks occurring on you

7. Spell Resist/Fortitude*
The former decreases your rate of critical magical attacks to occur on you and the latter decreases the damage of critical magical attacks occurring on you

8. Magic Cancellation
Newest addition to the stat list in 3.0, basically, the presence of this stat is a direct reduction on Magic Boost damage. Eg. A has 1000 Magic Cancellation, and B has 2000 Magic Boost, however, B only does 1000 damage on A.

The stats are listed in order of priority**, if you don't PvP (which is rare) then you should ignore MR. Always stabilize your priority stats before dabbling to the last two, and learn to balance stats. For example; going all HP still doesn't change the fact that you're still a squishy sorcerer, and plus you gimp on damage and magic accuracy.

**
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Originally Posted by Tazuza says - Vaizel
MR is plenty useful in pve.

1900+ MR will resist basically every skill at taha for instance (making the fight a complete joke.)

also, Spell resist is a stat on 55et ap jewels, as well as EC gear as a divinement (and theres lots of it on the ec 2.7 pvp gear.)

bosev is extrenely underrated... I have had it slotted since day 1.

also, your list of most important stats for pvp is incorrect. A better list in order of importance would be:

Magic Accuracy
Magic resist
HP
Strike Resist
magic boost
Magic crit
*Interestingly, only Spell Fortitude seems unavailable, Spell Resist can be gotten via the accessories and as a bonus stat in the 2.7 EC PVE/PVP armours. There exists a Spell Resist Scroll in the Aion database but presently, it's not available in the game.

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I need confirmation on this, I noted my characters, only my Spiritmaster, Cleric and Sorcerer characters have Spell Resist. My Sorcerer and Clerics, who are both level 55 have 90 Spell Resist while my Spiritmaster, level 30 has 50 of it.

My Chanter (level 50) and Templar (level 43) have 0 Spell Resist. At this point, I can only confirm it's not related to equipment, seeing as when I stripped them bare, their Spell Resist stat remains unchanged.
When/What to stack?

For the leveling sorcerer, you really shouldn't think of anything else aside from Magic Boost. Magic Accuracy only comes into play when you're leveling off elites/non-elites that are 5 levels higher than your current level.

Magic Accuracy becomes more important than Magic Boost come late end game, in both PvE and PvP (probably from lvl 45 onwards). It doesn't help if you can hit like a truck but your attacks aren't landing at all.

For PvE, HP is not a priority but add in moderation. HP, as straightforward as it is, increases your survivability so you don't get one/two shot. PvP wise, you would have to take into calculation of buffs and how much you actually need. Anything beyond 8.5k HP* unbuffed is good, do note your end game gear equipment and their sets do pump a decent amount of HP as well.

*(This is for endgame)

Magic Resist is a fun stat, this stat makes you strong against caster classes. A well built MR spec (with buffs) can easily top >2k MR, but the downside is that you hit for lesser damage* and melee classes are still a threat to you (taking into consideration the non-magical based attacks/debuffs). Gear is extremely important to supplement this stat, stone sockets aside, it's also expensive as well (since MR stones are a major investment for clerics too).

*(This isn't actually a big problem since MB can be easily supplemented with buffs, and plus you last longer in the battle with 'RESIST!' proc'ing off your screen every second)

Crit Spell only comes from a few sources:
Weapons
Accessories
Scrolls (Crit Spell Boost Scroll)
Buffs; the known two are Magic Assist I and the Chanter's Hit Mantra



It basically allows us to crit our spells (especially the nukes!) at a higher rate for double the damage. The average geared sorcerer usually has 100+ for this stat, this is a nice stat to have but you don't have to worry too much over it if you lack it.

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For every 100 Mcrit over your opponents spell resist, you have a 10% chance to crit.

The Damage on Magic Crit is always the same, regardless of your Magic Crit stat - that is 1.5x for all attacks, except for Refracting Shard, which is 3x

Tip courtesy of Romerio
The last two are equipment based stats, and usually meant for PvP. Strike Resist is preferred as if this is kept at a higher amount, critical attacks are not likely to occur. And keep in mind too that at end game, our counter classes tend to stack more critical. (A higher critical hit stat can 'overpower' a low strike resist stat)

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Magic Cancellation:

Thankfully, only Sorcerers and Spiritmasters have the highest natural and external boost to this stat, other avenues include buffs. As of the 3.0 update, only the latest armours have Magic Cancellation. While this is generally not much of a concern to caster classes, this stat directly affects our output damage. To counter, stack more Magic Boost.
Weapons

Sorcerers have two weapons of choice, the Orb or the Tome. I find most people unable to discern the difference between the two.

Tome
(Normal) attack - 16m maximum
Lower base attack
Higher base Magic Accuracy
Lower base Magic Boost
*Element is water based

Orb
(Normal) attack - 3m maximum
Higher base attack
Higher base Magic Boost
Lower base Magic Accuracy
*Element is fire based
Has additional HP/MP, and at higher amounts as compared to Tomes

Tomes are preferred over Orbs in PvP strictly for the reason of Magic Accuracy. Most of our targets these days do have an MR set and you definitely want an easier time trying to land attacks on your enemy, plus, the ranged normal attack does come in handy (more on PvP tips).

*(normal attack)

Both weapons being two handed, are allowed to be combined ever since version 1.9. This capability allows us to achieve a higher overall in stat boosting, and also making an attack/cast speed weapon possible. Weapon Combine NPCs can be found in Pandemonium and Sanctum.

Take note however, that weapon grade and level set limits on what can be the main and combined weapon. (ie. Stormwing's Tome is eternal grade and level 55, it cannot be a combined tome for anything lesser than those requirements)

Cast/Attack Speed

Cast Speed reduces the casting speed needed for our skills while Attack Speed increases skill/attack animations. While it's understandable why we need Cast Speed, most do not understand Attack Speed, let me explain.

Attack Speed, in a very small way allows us to finish skill animations faster so we can quickly start casting the next skill. This can be further augmented by utilizing jump-casting (more on that later).

Attack Speed can be gotten from equipment and scrolls, though usually there's no need for the latter.

Cast Speed weapons starts from 3% to a max of 20%, while Attack Speed weapons are only available as earliest as 16% to a max of 19%. Here's a list of Attack Speed weapons for your reference:

Tomes: Link
Orbs: Link

As you can see, there aren't as much Attack Speed versions for orbs as compared to tomes.

And yes, there is a cast speed cap, previously, attaining instant cast was possible (only for the Asmodian Sorcerers). Casting Speed is now capped at 80% as of version 2.5's update.

Skills

I'm not going to touch on everything because our arsenal is abysmal, just only on some specifics.

Crowd Control (aka CC)

Aside from being known as a nuker, this is your other expertise. You save lives when you CC a bad pull during PvE, and this renders your target helpless in PvP. Some things to take note however:
CCs have a fixed casting time
CCs have a reduced effected duration in PvP
They can be removed via Cleric's Dispel/Cure Mind
They can be potted out, for the immobilization types of CCs
Excluding Winter Binding & Curse of Old Roots, all CCs have a max cast range of 25m
A CC-ed (excluding Root/Winter Binding) target has high elemental defense (so don't be going all silly now and casting that Inferno on a CoR target, the damage won't be what you expect)

With that over and gotten with, let's get to the list.

1. Root
Your first CC, and also an immobilization type. There's no cast time and this is a life saver in PvE for melee type mobs. This however, should never be used as a first strike during PvP as it can be potted out of. This can also be removed via Cleric's Dispel.

2. Sleep
This renders your target totally helpless, unable to be potted out. Clerics can remove this CC via Cure Mind. It has a cast time of 2s (and that is considered long in PvP), it should be (and usually) used as a follow-up after the first CC in PvP.

3. Curse of Roots
A stigma only skill, and you should never remove this, no matter which stigma tree you follow. It can be removed via Cure Mind. This is a hot favourite CC starter by most sorcerers, the 1.5s cast time also makes it easier to jump cast with it.

4. Winter Binding
Our second immobilization skill, this is basically like an AOE root and has a max range of 15m. It can be removed via potting and Cleric's Dispel. This is often forgotten of and can come useful when running after or away from a group/zerg. It is instant cast, and it was patched to allow to be used when running rather than to stop and cast.

5. Sleeping Storm
The AOE sleep and has the fastest cast time among all the CCs, it's a stigma only skill. You definitely want this if you're going to PvP. It has the longest cooldown however, so use it wisely.

6. Curse of Old Roots
This is part of the Remove Shock chain, it instantly CCs the target but it has a very short duration, so an immediate follow-up CC is to be used quickly.

7. Tranquilizing Cloud
A special CC only usable with 3000 DP, it's a mini Sleeping Storm since it has a reduced affecting radius. It has a 30m cooldown and worth noting* that it's the only non-immobilization CC that does not increase the target's elemental defense.

8. 냉각 I (no English translation at the moment)
This CC turns your target within 15 meters into an "ice block" for 3-5 seconds. It's a special stun/immobilization combo but while the CC is in effect, the target can’t be attacked. It has very practical uses for escaping, capturing or interrupting.

*Tip courtesy of Romerio

Buffs

As the name implies, whatever we need buffing with in any aspect.

1. Robe of Flame/Earth/Cold/Wind

In a nutshell:

- Flame boosts Magic Boost
- Earth Fire/Water Resist and Mana Recovery Rate
- Cold reflects minimal damage and slows the target (attacking you) for 4s
- Wind boosts your Magic Cancellation by 300

Robe of Earth is used for those moments where you want to save mana, Flame is a no-brainer while Cold is used to throw off pursuing targets (mostly in PvP). Though take note while using Robe of Cold, your CC will be broken if your target manages to score an attack on you, allowing the active debuff to be carried over. Robe of Wind is part of the new skills in the Sorcerer repertoire for 3.0, pretty handy buff for a caster battle, ignoring 300 Magic Boost.

2. Zikel's/Vaizel's Wisdom
Zikel's increases Magic Boost by 300 for 15s while Vaizel's reduces Cast Speed by 25% for 15s. Both are stigma only skills. Zikel's starts off from level 28 while you can only have access to Vaizel's from level 37 onwards. Zikel's Wisdom becomes kind of redundant late game and you'll find it useful for only opening the rest of the DPS stigma tree.

3. Supplication of Focus
A stigma only skill, increase Magic Accuracy by 1000 for 20s. Basically, you can put everyone and everything to waste with this buff but do note smart players will kite you off until you lose the buff. Another drawback is that this is part of the DPS tree, sorcerers going for the PvP tree won't have access to this skill.

4. Boon of Quickness/of Strength
The sorcerer's racial only skills for Asmodians and Elyos respectively. Quickness reduces casting speed by 50% while Strength increases both Magic Boost and Magic Accuracy by 500. Both buffs last for 15s and have the same cooldown, they do not stack with the Wisdom skills and will override one another.

There was the longest debate ever about how unfair it was for Elyos sorcerers as Asmodian Sorcerers have such a huge advantage. The older version of Boon of Strength had only included 500 Magic Boost. Quickness used to be stackable with Chanter's Word of Quickness, allowing instant cast. This was no longer possible as of 2.5 as the casting speed has been capped to 80% and both buffs override one another.

5. Elemental Ward
Buffs up all Elemental Defenses and Magic Resist by 300, a stigma only skill available at level 52 and part of the PvP stigma tree. This was a pretty underused skill, until most people realized the usefulness of it. MR build sorcerers really do get a huge buff with this. Caster classes with low Magic Accuracy can also be easily defended against.

6. Magic Assist
Was known as Magic Boost until the developers decided to change it's name (which was perfectly silly and confusing, it's previous name). This buff is only available at level 55, it is a killer opening skill because it buffs:

i) 10% Cast Speed reduction
ii) 300 Magic Boost
iii) 300 Magic Accuracy
iv) 100 Crit Spell

It has a 5 minute cooldown, use whenever the situation calls for it!

7. Wintry Armour
A stigma only skill and part of the PvP stigma tree. This is basically a buffed up version of Robe of Cold (these two do not stack by the way), reflects 1000 damage per attack and reduces the target's movement/attack speed for 2s.

It was previously an assassin killer until they found a way around it. When used properly, it can kill ranged attackers too, but this means you have to get up close and personal to them. This skill is a perfect combo with Barrier of Severance as a last ditch tactic during dredgion and zergs.

Shields

1. Stone Skin
Your main shield, it takes a certain amount of damage before breaking. It also reduces the amount of PvP damage while it's in effect. Another important thing about this is that the Templar's Doom Lure will not work while Stone Skin is up.

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Additional Tip: This will block Doom Lure as long as there is enough HP left on the shield that it prevents all of Doom Lures damage. If even just 1HP of Doom Lure Lands as actual damage on you, you will get pulled. You need to keep this in mind, as if you pop stone skin, and get hit by a mob. Your shield will still be 'Up'. But you can still be pulled.

Courtesy of Romerio
2. Boon of Iron Clad
Blocks out all physical damage while having a UD effect (this means popping this skill in a timed fashion against a caster can block out stun effects from certain skills eg. Frozen Shock, Arcane Thunderbolt, Illusion Storm, Summon Whirlwind). Do be aware that while it blocks damage, status effects and debuffs can still continue to take effect. This shield will override Stone Skin.

3. Boon of Severance
This actually an underrated skill, but previously I have to admit it had almost no place in the sorcerer's arsenal until Wintry Armour came along. The 20k shield/Wintry combo saves your rear during group PvP/zergs/dredgion though the downside is that you'll probably die after that as while the skill is in effect, you're stunned. This combo works pretty well against unaware targets who still attack you thinking they stunned you while eating Wintry's damage. Similarly, this shield skill will override Stone Skin.

4. Illusion
Technically not a shield, of some sorts but works like one. It removes one debuff and avoids 2 physical attacks (and skills) for the next 10s, a stigma only skill and part of the PvP stigma tree. All I can say is, use this skill with precision and you'll win/survive your PvP encounters with ease. As with any temporarily buffs/skills, smart players will kite you.

Jumpcasting

This is almost a forgotten and dying art. All good sorcerers need to learn jumpcasting as it saves you time and could save your life in both PvP and PvE. Jumpcasting, in a nutshell allows you to skip the full skill animation, giving quicker mobility rather than sitting duck for incoming enemy attack.

To utilize this trick, when your cast bar is at 50% or more, press the direction button of your choice with jump. If this is carried out when the cast bar is 50% or less, the skill is cancelled although you still move. Helps a lot if you decide to think running is a better choice.

It is however, trickier with skills* that have a longer cast time (say 2.5s or more). But it's not impossible without practice.

*(try it with Flame Spray or Inferno and you'll get the idea)

HP/Mana Recovery

I wouldn't say sorcerers are completely helpless since the developers were kind enough to give us HP/Mana leech and regen skills, aside from Herb/Mana Treatment.

1. Absorb Energy/Gain Mana
AE is a no MP cost MP recovery skill, while Gain Mana puts your character into sleep while recovering mana like a DoT. Note that Gain Mana's sleep effect won't be interrupted by any means until the skill effect ends, so watch where/when you use it.

2. Refracting Shard/Soul Absorption
Both are mana leech skills that absorbs 50% of damage dealt back as MP. The difference however, is that RS does lesser damage, has a faster cooldown and tends to have a higher chance of doing a critical hit. For maximum leeching, it's advised to use this while you have Robe of Flame up (alongside with whatever Magic Boosting buffs you have).

3. Stamina Absorption
This was one of the newer skills added for Sorcerers. It's an instant cast HP leech skill. However, do take note it shares the same cooldown with Frost/Frostbite.

4. Exchange Vitality
A stigma only skill that works like the Cleric's Reverse Condition. This skill is actually tricky to utilize as it may kill* you outright when used in the wrong HP/MP ratios. I wouldn't recommend this to be used in PvP for beginners. The basics of this skill exchanges your current HP with your MP. It's a waste to use this when both your HP/MP are >75% as you would see little effects of it.

To summarize:

HP 75% MP 0% -> EV -> HP 1% MP 75%
HP 25% MP 90% -> EV -> HP 90% MP 25%

There is a short time lag when EV is in duration.

*(While it does leaves you at 1 HP maximum, any follow-up damage in PvP/PvE can kill you)

Godstones

I'll be very brief about this one, go for damage and silence godstones since those work well to our advantage. Damage godstones are also further boosted by Magic Boost (which we have a lot of), Zikel's Pride (3760 magical fire damage) is a hot favourite of many, when it does proc' the damage can be an instant staggering 6k.

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Aside from Paralyze/Damage godstones, other godstone effects can be potted out*, emphasis on DoT locking!
*Someone please confirm for gold Godstones

Next to the first two, the others that you can consider are paralyze and the 50% movement speed reduction godstones. I have seen sorcerers using those though they're not as practical (the latter being able to be potted out of).

And yes, normal attacks (also known as weaving) and DoTs (Flame Cage) will all have a chance of causing godstones to proc.

Note: I'm running out of space in this first post!! Click the links to see a single post:

Things you didn't knew... : https://forums.na.aiononline.com/na/showpost.php?p=1111518&postcount=10

PvP Strategies : https://forums.na.aiononline.com/na/showpost.php?p=1111772&postcount=13

Stat Ranges : https://forums.na.aiononline.com/na/showpost.php?p=1118729&postcount=24

Titles : https://forums.na.aiononline.com/na/showpost.php?p=1124382&postcount=32

Arena of Chaos 101 : http://forums.na.aiononline.com/na/showpost.php?p=1277468&postcount=50

Stigma Builds : Under Construction