Zombie form question

[Ryan220]

All of my recent played alts have been Warforged of one class or another - the most recent two taken to cap being a Sorc and a Wizard.

I like my self healing repairs - arghhhh Im dying, one click, ah im ok again. Super stuff.


For my current build Ive slipped toward the dark side and rolled a human (fleshy, euugh) Palemaster - my first pale master btw


So I hit level 6 yesterday and take PM and Zombie form, load up Lesser Death Aura and run a level appropriate quest on elite.

In form with aura running, my SLA and trusty Carni are munching through the quest quite steadily.


The only problem i had was with burst healing in form for when the chips are down as the aura seems a bit low.

My LDA ticks at between 1&5 and equipping a Sup Pot 2 item didnt seem to make any difference.


Is there any reliable way to burst heal in form at L6 and can i boost my LDA?

Or should I bin Zombie form and go Archmage untill wraith form becomes available?

Many thanks



edit added.......

my first L4 spell I take will be WoF, not NEB, so maybe the whole idea of binning zombie form is the best way

[Drekisen]

First off I despise people who "cheat" their way to wraith form.

Do PM all the way, it makes you that much better at learning your PrE by the time you're at 12th level.

That being said......Superior Nihil 2 and 4 clickies are extremely easy to craft.

Put them on a Void lore item or have a void lore in one hand and your clicky in the other when you click...then cast LDA...trust me your ticks will go up A LOT and you will get crits too.

Save up your funerary tokens...go to the vamp collectibles guy in house J.....tell him we are not so different while in form...talk to the wheep he summons and get three inflict serious harm potions per three funerary tokens turned in.

Tada....there is your burst healing

If you are on Argo I will help you with the clickies.

[trog_star]

cheat

[wax_on_wax_off]

All of my recent played alts have been Warforged of one class or another - the most recent two taken to cap being a Sorc and a Wizard.

I like my self healing repairs - arghhhh Im dying, one click, ah im ok again. Super stuff.


For my current build Ive slipped toward the dark side and rolled a human (fleshy, euugh) Palemaster - my first pale master btw


So I hit level 6 yesterday and take PM and Zombie form, load up Lesser Death Aura and run a level appropriate quest on elite.

In form with aura running, my SLA and trusty Carni are munching through the quest quite steadily.


The only problem i had was with burst healing in form for when the chips are down as the aura seems a bit low.

My LDA ticks at between 1&5 and equipping a Sup Pot 2 item didnt seem to make any difference.


Is there any reliable way to burst heal in form at L6 and can i boost my LDA?

Or should I bin Zombie form and go Archmage untill wraith form becomes available?

Many thanks



edit added.......

my first L4 spell I take will be WoF, not NEB, so maybe the whole idea of binning zombie form is the best way

You get 2 spells at level 7. 1 can be WoF, the other should be death aura. You don't need NEB until level 8. Level 6 isn't too flash for zombie form as LDA is pretty weak but it can be enhanced with items. I'd suggest getting a superior nihil II+ item and clicking it before you cast LDA, should be able to get some higher ticks that way.

Another really good idea is to get all of your funery tokens and other undead related paraphernalia and turn them into the vampire at the back of house J for inflict potions and other goodies. Inflict potions make a great form of burst healing until NEB is available (at level 8).

[Cardtrick]

The difference between Lesser Death Aura and Death Aura is huge. That's what will make the biggest difference in your survivability, rather than going from zombie form to wrath form (although that's awfully nice too). When you hit level 7, you get 2 L4 spell slots. I use one for damage (fire wall or acid rain) and one for healing (death aura).

At level 7, lesser death aura is giving you 1d4 HP every 2 seconds. Death aura will give you 2d4 + 3 (in-game description would imply 2d4 + 7, but it actually goes up by 1 per 2 caster levels rather than 1-1). With pale master 1 and a superior nihil clicky, you'll have a total of +100% to negative energy damage/healing, so you're looking at average ticks from lesser death aura of 5 HP every 2 seconds (ignoring crits), whereas death aura gives 16 HP every 2 seconds, and continues to increase as you level up. That's a dramatic difference.

When you eventually get a third L4 spell slot, you can go ahead and pick up negative energy burst if you want, but it's only rarely necessary at low levels. Even running elites for bravery, if you can get a little DR and keep blur/displacement/energy resists up, there's not much that damage you faster than death aura heals you. Eventually, you'll want to keep negative energy burst, set to always maximize, empower, and quicken, in an easily accessible hotkey slot to use in emergencies.

To summarize: stick with zombie form. Yes, the slow speed is annoying, but getting Death Aura at level 7 brings a tremendous survivability increase.

EDIT: Also, it's worth noting (since it took me a surprisingly long time to realize it) that lesser death aura and death aura can be active simultaneously and do stack. Not a big deal, since death aura is so superior, but every once in a while it's handy to have them both going (soloing demon queen at level, for example).

[Ryan220]

Thank you all for the replies.

I hit L7 last night and took WoF and Death Aura.

The difference between LDA and DA is nice - unfortunately the AH had no IV Nihil clickies and no IV potency items on iy (come on ghallanda, please AH your loot :-)

So its pot buying until i can find those items which wont take long

Cheers again

[LeLoric]

Thank you all for the replies.

I hit L7 last night and took WoF and Death Aura.

The difference between LDA and DA is nice - unfortunately the AH had no IV Nihil clickies and no IV potency items on iy (come on ghallanda, please AH your loot :-)

So its pot buying until i can find those items which wont take long

Cheers again

pm me your character name ill send ya a sup nihil crafted clickie.

[Ryan220]

pm me your character name ill send ya a sup nihil crafted clickie.

PM'd - most kind of you. Please check your mail after as il send you a pressie in return as i dont expect to receive things for nothing.

Its your guide im using for my PM btw. Excellent guide, most helpful thank you

[Rodomonte]

Another tip: make sure to turn off Heighten on Death Aura and Negative Energy Burst, otherwise they suck up lots of extra spell points unnecessarily.