The Thankless Path, ...to me at least. Options

[Aurorine]

I know a lot of mages have it figured out, but I've been playing for 3 months and I'm still level 84 (which is supposedly unheard of these days? This is my first character). From what I've seen being a mage is pretty freaking thankless.

I just need to vent a bit; anyone who wants to tear my whining apart is more than welcome to.

I guess I'll start with what pushed me over the edge: hunting. No one respects having a mage. They know they need one to get through a cave, but that's it. No one ever tells you how they prefer their setting, but when the mage stops her mass paras and starts assault setting, all hell breaks loose. Well, maybe you shouldn't have jumped right into those snakes Mr. Smart Warrior. Maybe you should have SAID "mass para," or "overflow set." Really would not have killed you.

Then, of course, there's combat. The Mage's strongest zap spell is Stormstrike, obtained at level 77. It's not even strong enough to 1-hit a Wilderness sheep. Many people, of course, bring up Hellfire's power. That's great, but the toll it takes on not only mana but also vita is insane. I could deal with the long aethers if it meant I could safely invoke and make the next set, but you have to sit there and heal yourself instead. After a certain point, a poet is more useful than a mage.

Finally, there's the insane tnl of the mage. After you hit level 80, you're nearly 1 billion exp between each level. A mage already can't solo thanks to the whole stormstrike/hellfire thing, and it's impossible to get a hunt when a party will just grab a poet and go without you.

Anyway... that's all the anger I need to get out for now. Thanks for reading.

[Eowen]

For the most part it is, also players have very little patience for 'bad' mages. However, mages by far have the highest scaling in the entire game, eventually insanities we're completely dominated (ruined) by them.

I always thought a lack of higher damage zaps was a bad design decision, in other games, say WoW for example, your entire rotation is pretty much 3second zaps.

Become a diviner, they ended up with the best of the best mage spells. Er, join for the roleplay, a quick numbers rundown : of the currently active top 20 mages, 14 are diviner for this reason. (1 unaligned, 3 NPC, 2 geomancers make up the rest)

[Buddy]

For the most part it is, also players have very little patience for 'bad' mages. However, mages by far have the highest scaling in the entire game, eventually insanities we're completely dominated (ruined) by them.

I always thought a lack of higher damage zaps was a bad design decision, in other games, say WoW for example, your entire rotation is pretty much 3second zaps.

Become a diviner, they ended up with the best of the best mage spells. Er, join for the roleplay, a quick numbers rundown : of the currently active top 20 mages, 14 are diviner for this reason. (1 unaligned, 3 NPC, 2 geomancers make up the rest)

Wow a subpath has better spells than JuJak!

[Yeas]

Its thankless while you're in the process of getting good. Once you're good, you are thanked, praised and constantly whispered.

[Skum]

Being a mage is miserable until about Enchanted stats, or so I'd gather. My first character was a mage, and after 12 years he's not even there because hunting is just such a pain in the butt. But maybe I'm just lazy.

[AllyGator]

My mage was awesome and in the top 20 until KRU started publishing stats. After that it was a contest. She was mid level (for the time) sam and I was in constant pain with carpal tunnel. I never have learned to use a mouse or the damned click/box thing. I always manage to lose my click focus somehow.

All I can say is that buff mages are the best at soloing. Poets can solo Vortex bosses but otherwise mages can solo everything else. If you are a good set mage then everyone will want you. But having massive mana and being able to take down a set of the largest creatures in the game isn't going to make you a desired hunting partner because of the aether delay plus the fact that you will tie up a poet. So yeah mages are a thankless path unless you like being overworked as a set mage or you enjoy a solitary life. And that's why I haven't played my SAM mage in over 7 years!

[Destyn]

But having massive mana and being able to take down a set of the largest creatures in the game isn't going to make you a desired hunting partner because of the aether delay plus the fact that you will tie up a poet.

I disagree here..One hit mages are more sought after than one hit rogues are. I mean, really, if mages are cranking out nearly as many kills per 15 minutes and one poet can heal multiple mages (where as each rogue needs his/her own poet), who needs a rogue? I've seen all mage groups a few times.

[Yeas]

EVEN if a one-hit mage wasn't killing as fast as a rogue, the fact they can hide in a corner and be easy to target/heal compared to a rogue makes it more wrist-friendly. There are other considerations other than just pure exp/hour sometimes that weigh into these things.

[LouisVuitton]

I hated setting.. Warriors and rogues were such pricks constantly crying about sets especially indos. It's like Jesus Christ all you do is hold down the spacebar and click 4 buttons shut the hell up... Some of the biggest complainers : mrkichi, werrty and all rogues, I'd pity hunt with rogues sometimes because they all suck and even then they would complain, I sucked at setting I donna why you'd complain though exp is exp even if the max takes 15 mins longer I wouldn't complain I leave that up to the turbo nerds with 1 hit stats lol...

[DivineChi]

Couldn't agree more.

I hated setting.. Warriors and rogues were such pricks constantly crying about sets especially indos. It's like Jesus Christ all you do is hold down the spacebar and click 4 buttons shut the hell up... Some of the biggest complainers : mrkichi, werrty and all rogues, I'd pity hunt with rogues sometimes because they all suck and even then they would complain, I sucked at setting I donna why you'd complain though exp is exp even if the max takes 15 mins longer I wouldn't complain I leave that up to the turbo nerds with 1 hit stats lol...

[TilakTkkch]

haha, had to click on this thread, just as expected. Everyone trying to suck worse than everyone else! NO WE SUCK NO WE DO!

Everything in Nexus is a damn contest, including who is the worst. =P