Incense Mage Guide Hello, My name is Solstice of Immortality Server, welcome to my Incense Mage guide. I began this guide as a kind of reference, to identify blind spots in my own Mage, which I just kept adding to, and it just grew out of control. I post it in the hopes that it helps players, new and old alike with their Incense Mage. There are far too many ways to make your mage more powerful, which I will not list ad-nauseam, however, this is enough to get the basic player started with the more crucial parts of their build. Enjoy! Incense Mage, what are we? We are masters of fire and brimstone. We will light the very floor on fire under our foes, then make it rain fireballs from the heavens, in a glorious apocalypse of mayhem and destruction. Incense Mages have one of the best AoE skills in the game, and it sets us apart from most other classes in a very good way. What we lack in sheer strength, support buffs/debuffs, and healing, we make up for in versatility. We can be both AoE focused, and DpH focused which is super useful, and has helped me solo most events such as warewolves, bloodforge, and many others, with lower level players in your squad, and I dont even need to be OP to do it, though it helps. It took me some time to stumble across the tricks of skill builds, but as I refine them, I can clearly see two very significant builds which have helped me tremendously in conquering the basics in dungeons and events through out the event week cycle. The first, I like to think of as a PvE build, which is also my default for its kiting ability. Note about Passives: Feel free to assume artistic license with passives, however consider that Evasion will only help you evade physical attacks (magic attacks will always hit no matter your Evasion level). Stun Resist/Possess Resist is nice against other incense Mages, but other classes will have their own non-comp control skills like dizzy/paralyze/etc/etc and Stun Resist/Possess Resist will not help you evade these do I dont bother leveling this unless I MUST beat another Incense Mage (it happens lol). Accuracy is another passive skill we dont really need because magic spells will always hit, so dont bother unless you want "staff smack" your foes for lulz. Tip and Fiery Feather are a MUST no matter your build preferences! PvE: [AoE crowd control focused] Citation: Fireborn Spark - Max Blazing Spirit - Max By Any Means - Max Cleansing Flame - Max Strong Shackles - Max Guardian of the Heavens: Max Flash - 10/22 Wizard of Fire - Max Steel Lock - Max Rebirth - Max Tip - Max Fiery Feather - Max Punishing Flame - Max Not Developed: Mysteries of the Stars Awakening Learning the Truth Comprehending Eternity Enlightenment The bread and butter of this build revolves around the use of Steel Lock and Punishing Flame (Aoe damage while being able to move combined with an astoundingly low cooldown of only 10 seconds making it fairly spam-able) for its AoE damage and crowd control, kiting ability. I have played all other classes (not as extensively mind you) and this is the absolute most useful skill combo, with regards to leveling and development, I have discovered so far. This build assumes that you are NOT on auto combat, for it to be utilized to greatest effect. Being able to move around the field imposing lots of damage, while being able to stay alive longer by kiting melee mobs has helped me get further in Pantheon Wars, Heavenly Treasure, and pretty much any instance that requires longevity, and AoE damage. Give it a try, I'd love to hear your thoughts and experiences. The next build I use for more focused engagements such as PvP / Pantheon Wars. PVP: [DpH focused] Citation: Inferno Spark - Max Blazing Spirit - Max By Any Means - Max Cleansing Flame - Max Strong Shackles - Max Guardian of the Heavens: Max Flash - 10/22 Wizard of Fire - Max Steel Lock - Max Rebirth - Max Tip - Max Fiery Feather - Max Dragon Fire Formation - Max Not Developed: Mysteries of the Stars Awakening Learning the Truth Comprehending Eternity Enlightenment This build is useful in Pantheon Wars for much higher DpH, for sacrificing kite damage. I use this when kiting isnt an option (non-melee classes). Within the first 10 seconds as the clock counts down to combat, I toss up: Guardian of the Heavens (shield) > Move close to opponent > when the timer reaches 2 throw down a preemptive DoT Cleansing Flame so your opponent takes damage immediately upon start of battle > I then use my esper attack (Orihank to devastating effect on my opponent) > Strong Shackles (Debuff & Stun) > then nuke them till the skill cycle renews, then rinse and repeat. Remember: - Some skills are able to be cast during the battle start timer countdown, so utilize timing accordingly. - You can have these two builds ready to go by utilizing the Overview tab in the skill window, Switching between the builds costs 200 gold so plan accordingly. Support: [Purge/Amp focused] Citation: Book Spark - Max Blazing Spirit - Max By Any Means - Max Cleansing Flame - Max Strong Shackles - Max Guardian of the Heavens: Max Flash - 10/22 Wizard of Fire - Max Steel Lock - Max Rebirth - Max Tip - Max Fiery Feather - Max Book of Incense - Max Not Developed: Mysteries of the Stars Awakening Learning the Truth Comprehending Eternity Enlightenment For this to be considered a full guide by any measure, I need to touch on this build. I am still very noob, and I have not learned all of the instances in the game, and as such, at this point, I cant recommend this build as useful in any specific combat instance, however I am sure it exists. At its core, Book of Incense purges debuffs from you and your party within a variable radius [(10) + (x) m]. It also buffs the [Defense] [Accuracy], and [Crit] stats by a variable percentage [(20) + (x) %], with a variable Cooldown time [(30) - (x) seconds]. This skill is further enhanced within the Book Citation, increasing [All Skills][Damage Dealt] and [Defense Bonus]. This build, when fully statted, has the potential to buff your parties effectiveness to pretty scary levels, while purging negative effects after every cast, enhancing squad survivability. My personal experience with this build having a second alt Incense Mage in my party purely for support, which for what it is, is amazing! I plan to experiment with this build in PvP, and while im not expecting much, I've been surprised before. I also plan on tweaking the passives, sacrificing active skills in order to increase survivability for a purely supportive capacity. Ill report its effectiveness (or lack there of) when I gain more experience. Espers: [Orihank] Ok, please note that I have very limited experience with esper and esper combos, but so far, I have found that Orihank (available with 200k Spirituality Exchange) to hands down, be the best esper for your opening and middle game. Once you get its level high enough, and your rebirths high enough, it makes an amazing weapon to fully utilize in heated, well timed combat, or to begin your attack as a "poke" to gauge the strength of your opponent. [Blood Sphere] Blood Spheres are made by putting 100x Blood Sphere Fragments in the Trigrams. You can farm Blood Sphere Frags in Beast God Grove (approximately 1-2 per day) or buy them at Auction House. This esper is a pain to farm but very very worth it. I instantly became much more tanky as this esper has a skill which transfers your opponents life into hp for you. It also comes with perfect Bloodmelding stats [Attack / Defense / Health] so DO NOT REROLL. It does not hit as hard as Orihank, but it is still better imho. There are alot of "end game" espers but this is a starting point towards obtaining true end game espers. Esper builds are pretty easy, but require a little trickery. First you will need "junk espers" to reroll Bloodmelding Stats until you have the stats you want. This can take a while but the target stats I aim for are: (Attack / Defense / Health) however, I am generally satisfied getting 2 of the 3 stats, favoring Attack and Defense. Next you will want to Roll and ReRoll your Saturation stats until you have all stats for your character. You can nit-pick the more desired skills later, but for a general use esper, as long as its 3 skill boosts for your class, awesome! Once you have the bloodmelding stats and Saturation Stats right, you will need to transfer them to your "Main Esper" using the inheritance tab and a "Golden Relic" which is relatively inexpensive for how much it helps in esper development. Pets: I have 4 main pets and am currently experimenting with skill builds and combos. Storm God [Dex] Fog [Defense] Flora [Attack] Falcon [Endurance] Again, I have had limited (comparatively speaking) experience with pets, however, there are a few tricks ive stumbled across. First thing you must do is get your pet to 4 skills. This is done most easily if your pet's GROWTH stat is maxed. Use "Pill of change" until its very very high, you can always change these levels later to better match your pet skill choices, but get 4 skills first and foremost. Next you will want to try to get certain skills on your pet. The trick here is to plan ahead, according to the pets natural affinity (Dex/Atk/Def/End) Make sure it has 2 skills devoted to its natural affinity. Next choose one other affinity, and attempt to first accomplish getting 2 of each chosen affinity on your pet (2 atk / 2 Dex) for example, using cheap common pet skills at first. You will want to keep your more powerful/desired skills set aside because it can sometimes take a while to get your pet narrowed down to only 2 skill arch-types. Now, since your pet can only learn 2 skills of any skill arch-type, ensuring that you learn your desired skill becomes 1 in 2 chance, as opposed to 1 in 4 chance. Pet tips and tricks: - The effectiveness of a given skill is determined by Gift Levels [Fervor] [Fortitude] [Loyalty] [Mobility]. Make note of what Gifts affect each of the skills for greatest effect. The basic stats can be re-rolled with Pill of Change, and are augmented by Allocate sub-tab under the Base tab of your pet menu. Subtle but long term planning can help you to sharpen the skill effects of your pets to their highest potential. - So far, it seems that pet skills fall into 2 categories apart from their arch-type: a. Skills that affect Master [Yours] stats b. Skills that affect Enemy [Mob / Boss] stats - I have no advice for actual skills so far, however I hope to have an update someday. Gems: With this section, I cheated a little, in the sense that I did not discover my build through experimentation, but rather through investigation. I took a look at the gems of end game toons, and compiled notes on the most common gem types and uses.So far, this is what Ive found: Attack Gems: Geomancy Stone (Attack) Earth Stone (Accuracy) Chaos Stone (Crit) Defense Gems: Crystal of Disaster (Defense) Taste Crystal (Health) Zenith Stone (Crit Resist) For the fourth stone, I leave you this hint: Pay very close attention to which stats most heavily effect your Path Level and choose accordingly. Example [Level 3 Attack Gem] > [Level 5 Stun Chance Gem] I farm gems from many sources but I place a very high importance in utilizing the Gem Bag to its highest effect. When it comes to gems I don't use (Stun Chance +, Paralysis Chance +, Drowsy Chance +, etc.) , I wait until the gem bag can produce a level 5+ gem, and I use the Trigrams to change its stat type with Change Amulet charm from Game Store for 200 gold. There are significant improvements to made to your gear, and overall character strength with this technique. Inserts: Same as in gems, this is stemmed from investigation. Attack Inserts: Attack Crit Crit Damage Defense Inserts: Defense Health Crit. Resist I farm my inserts with Coins of Existence exchange. When I am not leveling gear refines, I trade Amulets of Enchantment for them. Important note: Do not ever use "Tradable" Amulet of Enchantments in this manner. They're often worth far more to other players. Procs A proc is a programming term / mmorpg colloquial term, which refers to an event often attributed with a piece of gear or the use of a skill, triggered under special circumstances. Example 1: [Weapon Proc] Whenever an attack is landed, there is a % chance that an effect will buff a character, debuff an opponent, or effect how combat damage is calculated. Example 2: [Armor Proc] Whenever damage is taken, there is a % chance that an effect will buff a character, debuff an opponent, or effect how combat damage is calculated. JDM has many procs called [Fate Skills] which can be added to your gear through the use of the [Development] tab within gear enhancements. You can farm [Development Tags] through the [Hallowed Ground] item which are found at random from daily instances on Hard or above. My personal philosophy is to use these tags to reroll my gear development until I get a proc on all of my gears even at the detriment of Power Level. Once I have the procs on all of my gear, I will reroll them until I get procs plus higher power level. This takes a while and has become a favorite pet project of mine, and as such I have developed a special affinity towards certain procs as I have found them useful in PvE and PvP. My favorite procs are: [Memory]: My experience is that the % of time stacks with other gear giving you a few precious seconds of life before your death. It is also my experience that if I am able to heal myself, I am able to stave off death associated with the end of the countdown. [Threat]: Nice debuff to opponent. [Stroll]: Makes it harder to be controlled. Nice "non-comp" [Chase]: Nice "non-comp" [Swanly Figure]: Nice "non-comp" {non-comp is a programming term / mmorpg colloquial term for non comparable skills which are unique to each class and are usually associated with fighting a concept called power creep} Further Improvements These tips are fairly ubiquitous for any class in JDM - Commit yourself to learning to play the game manually (NOT on auto). You will learn much more about the caveats of each dungeon, instance, and/or boss which will increase how successful you / your party are. - Work to improve your character every day, and dedicate yourself to increase your Path Level every day, even if only a small amount, over time it adds up - Read / Learn / and Understand your skills. There are hidden Debuffs / Buffs tucked into many skills, which can help in macros and timing. It also helps you to discover the most efficient skill combat order. - Be Fearless: Participate in every instance (Even if you arent too keen on PvP) Guild Wars arent only for PvP'ers, there is also material farming, and the rewards are awesome, even if you get killed, or loose.
