Ice Sorcerer Build- am I doing this right?

[Azuredrakez]

Hey all, appreciate you reading this post! I've been working on a gearing build for my fresh level 32 Ice Sorc. I am not an expert by any means and am relatively new to the game, so I was wondering if this was a good approach to gearing in general or if there's something I'm missing. There was a lot to consider in terms of different stats to prioritize and set bonuses I could/couldn't go for due to slot limitations so I'd appreciate if you could let me know what you think!

Things I'm not sure about and wondered if anyone knew the answer to:

1. For the Isle of Dread Set Augment slots where I'm planning on putting Deacon set, do they retain their Isle of Dread set as well for the 5 piece? I'm guessing that would be way too op, and I didn't include 5 just for the set, there wasn't a better belt at the end after everything else came together.

2. Any easy sources of spell crit rate or damage that I'm forgetting/missing?

3. Any sets I could be utilizing with my currently setless items without sacrificing too much coverage on stats I have? For example, I chose not to go Anger of the Avalanche because those stats were all taken care of already, so the lost stats from those lines were too much of a loss to take for a small set bonus.

4. In order to farm that much Isle of Dread augment/item stuff, is that a long, long grind? I own the expac just have yet to start it.

5. is ~1K a normal amount of health to have with a Lvl 32 Sorc? Do I need to compensate more than just resistances, CON and blur etc like I am currently?

Thanks and again appreciate any constructive feedback!

Extra info: My Sorc is part Eldritch Knight and can use melee weapons as spellcasting implements. A lot of my damage is currently coming from polar ray, moon lance, zero degree comet and other unsaveables so I'm trying to min max the crit and spellpower especially.

[Tyrande]

Hey all, appreciate you reading this post! I've been working on a gearing build for my fresh level 32 Ice Sorc. I am not an expert by any means and am relatively new to the game, [...]

You only need to worry about CHA, CON and cold spell power.

[...]
1. For the Isle of Dread Set Augment slots where I'm planning on putting Deacon set, do they retain their Isle of Dread set as well for the 5 piece? I'm guessing that would be way too op, and I didn't include 5 just for the set, there wasn't a better belt at the end after everything else came together.

AFAIK, you can have two sets and they stack, one for artifact bonus and another with profane set bonus.

2. Any easy sources of spell crit rate or damage that I'm forgetting/missing?

Frozen Wanderer 2pc +5% cold spell crit and Coalesced Magic (rare) +4% universal spell crit, +40 Universal spell power, +1 Caster Level

3. Any sets I could be utilizing with my currently setless items without sacrificing too much coverage on stats I have? For example, I chose not to go Anger of the Avalanche because those stats were all taken care of already, so the lost stats from those lines were too much of a loss to take for a small set bonus.

I don't have that set, so I can't comment. But IMHO, I think the Cannith raid sets from Chain Elementals might be better and just need 2pc (rings).
Some cold sorcerers or druids do the KT stuff with schism crafting with items from the White Plum Mountain, i.e. Wave, and sentient gem of Wave.

4. In order to farm that much Isle of Dread augment/item stuff, is that a long, long grind? I own the expac just have yet to start it.

Ask firegoddess, he farmed them all already.

5. is ~1K a normal amount of health to have with a Lvl 32 Sorc? Do I need to compensate more than just resistances, CON and blur etc like I am currently?

Most raid leaders that I know prefer on the upwards of 1500hp AFAIK. But 1200hp should be acceptable as far as a sorcerer is concerned.
However, with 1200hp my characters felt very squishy unless the aggro is controlled very well with -60% hate or more.

Extra info: My Sorc is part Eldritch Knight and can use melee weapons as spellcasting implements. A lot of my damage is currently coming from polar ray, moon lance, zero degree comet and other unsaveables so I'm trying to min max the crit and spellpower especially.

If you're doing anything higher than Reaper 5, my characters (casters) would avoid doing melee.

[Tyrande]

also, I forgot to mention, in your spreadsheet that Pomura's ring and Legendary Queen's Scepter, the spell power does not stack. Only Universal stacks, potency doesn't stack with elemental spell power.

[Azuredrakez]

Oh wow I had no idea that potency didn't stack- that changes everything! Will update build and repost soon

[Marshal_Lannes]

I'd highly recommend getting the upgraded Wave. It gives Greater Elemental Form which is a unique, amazing benefit and really the primary reason to go water. If you're planning on doing any raids over Legendary Hard or doing Reaper over 4 you need to have around 2000 HPs. 900-1200 isn't sufficient. You'll be dead quite often which dramatically impacts your DPS.

[LurkingVeteran]

I'd highly recommend getting the upgraded Wave. It gives Greater Elemental Form which is a unique, amazing benefit and really the primary reason to go water. If you're planning on doing any raids over Legendary Hard or doing Reaper over 4 you need to have around 2000 HPs. 900-1200 isn't sufficient. You'll be dead quite often which dramatically impacts your DPS.

Last I heard, the caster levels on Wave are useless though.

[Azuredrakez]

Hey so your comments had me thinking about the core of the build I was trying to make and what each stat was actually giving me. I think earlier I was too focused on checking every single thing off the list (Ins Char, Q Char, Ins Con, SFM, Ins SFM, etc.) instead of thinking about cold sorcerer as a whole, and specifically the build I'm using where the majority of my damage is coming from polar ray and SLAs like moon lance and zero degree comet. I sort of realized that a very small part of my damage comes from things that care about spell pen or saves- they are essentially unavoidable damage already. Additionally, a lot of my damage comes from the DI mantle DOT, also unsaveable and ignoring spell pen. So for this iteration, I decided instead of trying to hit every single stat on the list, I would try to really amp up my damage from spell power, crit chance and crit damage instead by maximizing how many sets I could possibly fit into the build by leaning into the fact that I am not a DC caster.

Some notes on the build:

Reflection of Wave was a key change away from having two different weapons, but I think it is the superior choice. Regardless of whether the 5 caster levels actually help or not, it gives 50 Exceptional Cold spell power and 5% Exceptional Cold Crit Damage, which I believe it is the only source of in the game. Additionally, in the DI tree there is a feat that doubles the implement bonus of quarterstaves, so that is an additional 29 Universal SP, almost a whole set's worth! Altogether that's 79 Spell power and 5% Crit damage, which I think is more than worth the tradeoff.

Rebuilding the set list, I managed to fit 5 (!) sets into the build while stacking crit stats and spell power. Mostly thanks to happenstance that the 2 piece sets didn't use any of the same slots. The three piece sets were a byproduct of necessity. Dino made sense to get the 35% crit damage stats needed, and then slot in Deacon set augments for another crit damage boost and so it made a core/irreplaceable part. For Glaciation spellpower, I think one of the most efficient items in the game is Bottled Rainstorm, giving you the full Insightful and Quality Glaciation bonuses in one item. Filling out the rest of the Autumn 3 piece set for crit chance made sense due to that one item, and the belt (Strap of Autumn Leaves, it's misnamed in the screenshot) is a minor artifact that is mostly there to give access to filigree bonuses.

Temple's Tide (Goggles, Ring 1), Anger of the Avalanche (Gloves, Bracers) and Shaman's Fury (Neck, Ring 2) sets fill out the remaining items; The items themselves are not necessarily efficient on the stats they give, but AFAIK there is no additional source of crit/spellpower outside of set bonuses (with the exception of insightful spell lore on something like Pomura's Memento, but slotting in such an item wouldn't increase the bonuses bc then you'd lose the current set's crit chance AND spellpower, leading to lower bonuses overall). The only other thing I can think of is a +20 spellcraft boost, but even then Insightful spellcraft is taken care of, and again 20 spellpower is less than the set bonus you'd lose from exchanging the slotted items.

I realize that this is quite glass cannon, lacking on CC and party dependent, but in terms of maximizing damage this is the best I could find. Am I missing anything? Is this pretty much useless since I'll get one shot by anything that sneezes in my direction? I can currently run around and snipe out enemies using my ray spell's doubled range, but would love some practical feedback or if anyone has used a build like this before and has some tips on how to run it I am all ears!

Ice Sorc Build Full Damage.png

[Marshal_Lannes]

What's your total cold spell power and crits (chance and damage multipliers)? What is your filigree load out? Why not use an IoD artifact vs the belt and fit in another autumn piece for the set bonus? Bottled Rainstorm is indeed awesome for cold casting. Per Lurking - I've seen no indication that the 5 levels on Wave don't work.

[Caarb]

What's your total cold spell power and crits (chance and damage multipliers)? What is your filigree load out? Why not use an IoD artifact vs the belt and fit in another autumn piece for the set bonus? Bottled Rainstorm is indeed awesome for cold casting. Per Lurking - I've seen no indication that the 5 levels on Wave don't work.

It works but all heroic spells are capped by their MCL. Only epic abilities will benefit. Most end game players have switched to double dino for the debuffs for shortman/groups and only use Wave when all debuffs are covered elsewhere.

[Eantarus]

No, it should be fire. You clicked the wrong element.

[Tyrande]

No, it should be fire. You clicked the wrong element.

blame SSG on that one. They made fire too good and synergize with the Exalted Angel destiny with is very useful for high reaper kiting or running away in general.
on top of the wings the fire sorcerer also gets two very useful SLAs. (Holy Fireball and Sun Bolt) and a useful staff of the summer solstice and all overpowered SLA Reborn in Fire
and good L8 DBF and L9 meteor's swarm.

Ice sorcerer can pick Magus of the Eclipse, but loosing wings. (got zero degree comet SLA and moon lance) and can use the upgraded reflection of wave, Pomura's Momento ring.
L8 polar ray is single target and not as good as DBF, and L9 is iceberg, not as good as meteor swarm. L5 dot, L4 ice storm.

Lightning sorcerer? can pick Primal Avatar with the Sky Mantle and loosing wings. (just storm catcher + thunder snow), no good items here? may be Bound Elemental Ring of Lightning from LMA?
L6 chain lightning and L9 lightning strike (single target), not as good as fire. L5 dot, no level 8 electric spells?!?

Acid sorcerer? can pick Primal Avatar with Thorn Mantle and loosing wings. (just carrion swarms + shard storm), probably blight staff and Bound Elemental Ring of Acid from LMA?
L6 acid fog (slow casting), L8 BDB (single target) and L9 meteor's. L4 acid rain (not as good as firewall)

They all get dragon breath so I didn't put that there.

[Azuredrakez]

What's your total cold spell power and crits (chance and damage multipliers)? What is your filigree load out? Why not use an IoD artifact vs the belt and fit in another autumn piece for the set bonus? Bottled Rainstorm is indeed awesome for cold casting. Per Lurking - I've seen no indication that the 5 levels on Wave don't work.

I don't actually have these items yet, so I can't say what the totals are factoring in build and feats etc. sorry! I am more using this build as a guide for things to go for.

Considering IoD, if I replaced autumn belt for IoD belt, it would bring me to 4 IoD pieces. The problem is that for the set bonus I'd need 5, and every other item slot I could fit the last one in besides weapon would also be a minor artifact, and therefore not doable. Reflection of Wave is worth like 3 set bonuses of extra damage/SP if not more bc my SLAs are epic and gain the full caster level benefit. The dino belt itself also does not give any useful/mandatory bonus in the build. Thus I think sticking with autumn belt for the crit would be better.

For filigrees I think 4 Frozen wanderer is a given for more crit chance and 50 more Cold spellpower, and I was going to do last 5 Dragon for 10% more crit damage and the spell cooldown to help smooth out the rotation.

[J-2]

Isle of dread is now a horrible wretched farm. They nerfed it back on November 16th.
Prior to that date, drops were rich and running it was fun and exciting. It was enjoyable.
Afterwards, its become one of the worst slogs in the game.

If you are farming wilderness items they have a ~3% drop rate on top of a 30% chance to actually get a red name.
An exception is the water weird. He only has a 1% chance. I'm unsure if its related to his double spawning bug.
Don't even bother with loot rerolls for red chests. I think they are broken, ransack is screwed up, or its just flat out rigged to fail if you're level capped.
Rerolls usually only offer up contents that you would expect from a ransacked chest even after taking a week off.

The IOD quests were nearly as bad but seem to have been readjusted recently to be a C hair higher.
My first several hundred had a 2-4% drop rate on elite.
If I isolate my last hundred or so I get about 6% on elite.
However, the crappy items that no one seems to want drop much more frequently indicating the loot tables themselves are very biased.

The dinosaur bone minor artifacts are now ultra rare too.
I get maybe one or two a month. Can't really give a percentage as I stopped tracking it.
I don't go out of my way anymore to get the optional chests unless its a very quick divert.

Just my findings after about 1200 or so entries in my database. Some additional points below you may appreciate.

I now have maxed out both my sentient jewels and am working on the farming alt's jewels.
Expect a metric arse load of sentient food. Especially those firemouth's diving helmets and any shield.
I suspect they are rigged to drop far more often the others.

Another noteworthy thing I noticed was that when I drank my 15% pot of discovery, it rained blue gear and artifacts.
I got around a 50% drop rate, and got (43) pieces of gear in that hour.
It was almost as though the pot corrected the flaw in the drop rate and did its bonus thing as well.
Sadly, I only got (2) things I was looking for. The rest (inlcluding 10 of those GD Diving helmets) went to food.

Additionally, I now have thousands of fossil ingredients for the dino crafting.

Lastly, I did seem to get better drops at L29 than I did at L32, but I did not track that metric either.
Just going by memory over (3) characters.
They all played pretty similar as though the programming behind it is the culprit in the bad drop rates.

They really need to quit baiting and switching drop rates on gear.
Repetition is not fun and only breeds hostility.

[LurkingVeteran]

It works but all heroic spells are capped by their MCL. Only epic abilities will benefit. Most end game players have switched to double dino for the debuffs for shortman/groups and only use Wave when all debuffs are covered elsewhere.

This. +CL without a corresponding +MCL are mainly useful if you are going to multi-class, which you won't on a sorc.

[Marshal_Lannes]

It works but all heroic spells are capped by their MCL. Only epic abilities will benefit. Most end game players have switched to double dino for the debuffs for shortman/groups and only use Wave when all debuffs are covered elsewhere.

AzureDrake specifically said the main spells he casts are Moon Lance and Zero Degree Comet. Most sorcerers should be relying on their epic spells/abilities I assumed that's what we were talking about. When people come on and say the +5 spell levels don't work that's just inaccurate. Since he doesn't have any of the equipment yet, it's worth noting that filling out a 3 piece IoD set plus two weapons is a lot of work. That's a Sisyphean level of grinding when all you're accomplishing is debuffs, which someone else in the party already usually has anyway (and certainly does in a raid group). Reflection of Wave remains a superb choice for any water savant. Of course, there are different choices to make, that has been the design philosophy of DDO for the last several years so no one item is best in slot. All combinations have their pros and cons. It should also be noted that if you're unlucky with Schism shards then Wave can be a beast to upgrade as well (and depending on the server he is on running Killing Time might or might not be common).

Of particular note, a cold sorcerer can function as credible CC until you are fully geared and have high enough evocation DCs. You get full advantage of Glacial Wrath and the no-save freeze of Moon Lance is effective and most welcome in any high-reaper party. The moon circle also slows down mobs which is very helpful in quests where monsters are constantly rushing at you like in Temple of Elemental Evil. You also excel at high alpha strikes so you can delete reapers with alacrity.

The OP is already one step ahead in that they have identified core abilities they want to enhance. Each element does this in different ways causing the sorcerer to play slightly differently as the synergy between spell, element, destiny, and gear comes out. Happy hunting!