WF Wiz good choice for a new player?

[zchristian1]

I was going to try WF Sorc, but have seen so many posts about the wiz being superior. My concern is I'm new so won't I have a hard time acquiring the spells? Is Sorc better?

[Lorien_the_First_One]

Wiz is an excellent choice for a new player because it is much more flexible. It actually requires a bit more skill to play well since your spells per rest are more limited, but you can change them whenever you rest and that's a powerful advantage. WF are great arcane casters because they can self heal.

As for finding the spells...there is a trick to it. Most low level spell scrolls can be bought at the local vendors. BEFORE levelling up to levels that get new spells, go to the vendor and buy 1 of every scroll they have for the next spell level and inscribe it. (They won't show up in your spell book until you train, but they are there!). Then when you get ready to train, there will be few spells to choose from that you don't already know so its easier to pick and harder to miss something good. The highest level spells are a bit harder to come by, but by then you'll have the cash to buy scrolls on the AH if you need to.

Oh, and give this a read if you haven't already been to the wiki... It will help you to understand Wizards better than the compendium IMO. http://ddowiki.com/page/Wizard

[Gulnar13]

It's more a matter of tastes. I like more the wizard, because i swap spells a LOT; also, as a wizard, i don't get a -2 hit on my primary casting stat. BTW, a sorc WF still rocks.

WF wiz pros:

- more spell slots.
- you can swamp spells at will.
- more feats.
- higher DC.

WF sorc pros:

- faster casting.
- more sp.
- higher UMD.

Remember that with quicken, casting speed is not an issue, and with a conc/opp item sp becomes marginal too. Also, with the fact that you can heal yourself, UMD is not that useful (just to use raise scroll on fallen meatbags).
On the other side, there aren't that many useful spells in this game (other than level six with disintegrate/GH/recostruct/acid fog/chain lighting/flesh to stone). Also, in some packs (like shavarath) mob saves are that high that a 2-3 point difference is not that different.

[Montrose]

WF wiz is a great first character, particularly if you like to solo. You have the flexibility of trying all the spells in the game, uninterruptable self-healing (with quicken), lots of damage mitgation and lots of DPS.

The downside to a WF wiz is that it costs a ton of money to learn all the spells in the game. It will somewhat tight on your character's finances if this is the first toon you run.

[shurakaibob]

I know this thread goes about WF wizards but how about a new player without access to WF? I m not really that interested in WFs and read alot about very good human wizard builds but all of them had very good items in use.
Is Wizard still a good choice to play or is it a too big drawback with no self healing available?

[Lorien_the_First_One]

I know this thread goes about WF wizards but how about a new player without access to WF? Is Wizard still a good choice to play or is it a too big drawback with no self healing available?

Nope, its still fine, not every character has to be a self healer :)

Other good wizard options include Drow (+2 int) or Human (+1 int, +1 feat, +more hp)

If you want to keep the self healing in on a non WF arcane, Human Sorc with max UMD skill is actually a really nice option as they will withing a few levels be able to start using cleric wands, and eventually scrolls.

[Montrose]

A more advance option to consider is a multi-class rogue/wizard. Rogue/Wizard builds are pretty good at soloing during the lower levels when being a wiz is difficult. You'll get easier access to self-healing since UMD is a rogue skill.

Choose this very very carefully though, and be aware of what you'd be giving up if you ran this character to cap (lower DC on spells, miss out on capstone, fewer spell slots per level).

[Muldamai]

It's a preference. Even though I do like the machine gun effect of a Sorcerer, I heavily prefer playing my Wizard. Try them both out for a few levels and see what you like. Same can be said for Cleric vs. Favored Soul.

[Phidius]

A more advance option to consider is a multi-class rogue/wizard. Rogue/Wizard builds are pretty good at soloing during the lower levels when being a wiz is difficult. You'll get easier access to self-healing since UMD is a rogue skill.

Choose this very very carefully though, and be aware of what you'd be giving up if you ran this character to cap (lower DC on spells, miss out on capstone, fewer spell slots per level).

Technically, the only loss of DCs is due to missing out on the capstone. However, there is a loss of Spell Penetration to consider.

Op, with regards to your Wiz vs Sorc question, Wizards also get to choose spells just like sorcerors when they level. The difference is that wizards can also inscribe additional spells from scrolls found or bought, while the Sorc has to pay gold to switch out spells and then wait ~3 days to switch out another.

It's only more expensive for Wizards to learn every spell than a Sorc because a Sorc can't.

[ddoer]

I know this thread goes about WF wizards but how about a new player without access to WF? I m not really that interested in WFs and read alot about very good human wizard builds but all of them had very good items in use.
Is Wizard still a good choice to play or is it a too big drawback with no self healing available?

For new players, being able to heal themselves cheaply is an significant advantage. WF caster is an easy button that new players should take advantage of.

imho, for any class who don't fight in the front line that will get mass heal from the healers, they should be able to heal themselves. if you can't use heal scroll, then bring a lot of CSW pots/wands and top your own hp. healers generally prioritize healing melees as they expect casters to avoid aggro or stay alive by themselves.