I'm getting wrecked as a mage.

[Kexin]

I've watched footage of streamers wrecking shop with bows and guns. But as mage I'm totally getting wrecked. Cool downs are too long and range is too short, putting me in prime melee range. What am I doing wrong?

[Infected Mushroom]

Originally posted by Kexin:

I've watched footage of streamers wrecking shop with bows and guns. But as mage I'm totally getting wrecked. Cool downs are too long and range is too short, putting me in prime melee range. What am I doing wrong?

You need to get yourself a unique grim to cut your cd's by 50% which makes everything go boom. I think you get one in the first region somewhere, maybe one of the bounties I don't remember exactly.

[hat boy]

First thing that pops into my head is I'm curious about your ability points. Never felt like range or cooldowns was an issue myself, then again I probably focused too much on perception early on (increasing range)

[Solo Cat Collector]

First and foremost, be sure that the quality of your ranged weapons ( I am gonna assume you are using a wand) is equal or superior to the quality being used by your enemy. You get a %35+ bonus damage if that is the case, if I remember correctly.
Secondly, stack damage modifiers.
For example, in the second region there is plenty of items that boost electricity damage.
Currently I have 3 pieces of gear of that nature. Bracers, a wand, and a grimoire solely focused on boosting electricity damage.
And there is of course your ability points, as mentioned above by hat boy. If you could share your stats and skills, that would be helpful in giving you advice.

[naomha]

Originally posted by Kexin:

I've watched footage of streamers wrecking shop with bows and guns. But as mage I'm totally getting wrecked. Cool downs are too long and range is too short, putting me in prime melee range. What am I doing wrong?

As of tonight I've got 41 hours playing as a Mage. Couple of tips. STOP playing like you're a tank. Keep your distance like mages are supposed to. Have your Perception even with your intellect. Perception increases the range at which your wand "shoots" and hits. There's a mission you get really early on to "find the memory" or something like that. It's on the Eastern side of the first map. GO DO THAT mission. It'll give you a FREE +2 to your constitution as a Mage which is a godsend. I ONLY bumped up my constitution once since starting. Granted, I've died a few times from aggro on me but half of those were my fault since I dodged too close to other enemies.

Pick a form of magic you want to use and STICK TO IT. ABility points are rare. You ONLY get them when leveling and completing certain quests. You can NOT dump points into everything. Pick a certain kind of magic (fire, shock or ice) and STICK TO IT. Max level in this game is 20. I'm not sure how many other ability points you get through missions but it is NOT a lot. If you look at your ability tree you see all kinds of choices. You will NOT get to raise them all. Def dump points into Grimoire Mastery (grants access to higher level spells as you level up), Armored Essence (lowers the negative stats for using light armor-there is no true mage armor) and Arcane Veil (prevents your spells from being interrupted and increases Damage Reduction by 50%). Early game I'd put a point into each of them with at least 2 points in Grimoire Mastery so you can use some better spells when you find em.

Lastly, USE your team member's specials on the ability wheel. They will save a mage's life. Especially when you get the first two team members. It will make your life a TON easier making sure you use them. Also, the game is very generous with grenades of ALL SORTS. USE THEM. You will also have access to your potions and food in the ability wheel and can "heal" without being in an action scene. Spingberries should be saved and used when something is hacking at your health like poison or electricity. It will SAVE YOU from literally dying because you may not be paying attention to what all is happening at once. Pay attention to that health bar. Enemies will have SKULL ICONS next to their names and in the mission journal. If you come at enemies with 3 skulls you're gonna die. Plain and simple. When using COMMON weapons and armor a 3 skull mob will be using FINE weapons and armor and can do 35% MORE damage against you because of that. Keep that it mind. Do NOT try to go against them until you get better gear. Just don't. As a mage you'll die. Same applies to 2 skull mobs as well. Also, in early game SELL EVERYTHING you're not gonna use or wear. ALL OF IT. You're going to need to BUY better gear or the items you need to eventually get your gear to FINE status.

[geryboy85]

you should use sidesteps and dodge since your attacks don't use stamina.

you should kite.

[naomha]

Originally posted by SoloTOV🐒 Flying Monkey:

First and foremost, be sure that the quality of your ranged weapons ( I am gonna assume you are using a wand) is equal or superior to the quality being used by your enemy. You get a %35+ bonus damage if that is the case, if I remember correctly.
Secondly, stack damage modifiers.
For example, in the second region there is plenty of items that boost electricity damage.
Currently I have 3 pieces of gear of that nature. Bracers, a wand, and a grimoire solely focused on boosting electricity damage.
And there is of course your ability points, as mentioned above by hat boy. If you could share your stats and skills, that would be helpful in giving you advice.

You ONLY get a 35% damage boost if you gear is of the next level above them. ie, they're using COMMON gear and you're using FINE gear. Most of the ENTIRE first map is common to Fine level 1 ONLY. Nothing greater. The highest you can get your gear in the first map is FINE level 1, which makes the skull icons on higher tier enemies go to 1 or none.

[Xyyth]

Move around. Freeze enemies. Use Kai to aggro things off of you. Attack attack attack. The mage does the most damage. Upgrade your equipment. Do side quests and lower until you can upgrade stuff then go to Main Quest.

[Somdier6]

i suggest you dump all your points into stamina and get really really good at dodging and blocking...i chose the middle of the road guy and while on Hard Difficulty its challenging, its not Dark Souls challenging