Blue Mage: Best thread ever

[Kaslo]

Yes but he is saying int affects it, which a taru has much higher, and it may be affected by macc. Which this taru has full merits in, and I do not. 10 int and all that macc should make up for mssing that skill, which people say is a waste to merit above a certain point anyways.

Well I think people have been referring to MAGIC ACC and not MAGICAL ACC which there is a big difference, like said above macc may have an effect but Magical Acc is Accuracy for your Magical Spells. Plus INT is less potent for procs than skill imo.

[fantasticdan]

While you might be right in that the merits probably don't affect the accuracy of the stun effect, there is nothing to say that magical accuracy in general won't affect the accuracy of the stun portion of headbutt. INT _definately_ affects the resist/duration of Headbutt stun, as anyone fighting IT imps will tell you.

Why would anyone fighting IT imps tell you that? Does everyone fighting IT imps have an INT gear set they've been testing headbutt with or something? Has there been any conclusive test done on this subject?

[Belgaer]

Has anyone ever done any testing with Dark Magic skill on MP Drainkiss? Healing Magic skill seems to affect the potency of our cures, so it makes me curious.

Also, would Dark Arts affect MP Drainkiss in any way, aside from the potential boost in accuracy from the Dark Magic skill? I don't believe Dark Arts or Light Arts have any affect on our spells directly, but I'd still like a definite answer if anyone knows from experience.

[ClarkSammich]

Belgaer /sch stuff, etc

MP Drainkiss: 75BLU/15SCH, Carrion Worm, East Ronfaure S.
58+1 INT, 41 Dark Magic, No Dark Arts:
89, 113, 106.

Same conditions as above other than Dark Arts, 246 Dark Magic:
88, 100, 128.
All six casts in my amazing sample size were done Watersday.

I know, shit sux, need more casts, etc.
But personally I don't think it effects it.

[Masamune]

Hello

I'm searching conclusive infos about Asuran Claws, where can i find any ?

(Please don't link me to ffxiclopedia, as i suspect AC to follow exact opposite pattern as Selene's Bow... but need more infos/tests to confirm)

Thanks.

[Krazy]

You want conclusive info? AC sucks.

[Masamune]

I know it "sux", what i want to know is "why?", i don't need lolanswers like you just did Krazy (it doesnot make things better) but thks anyways for the effort to answer

On another topic, does anyone made any tests between Enkidu mittens and Alkyoneus on Big3 ? (the test shown on thread attached .jpg shows only between Alky/Pallas/cust/homam)

[LD]

It has a shitty stat mods, att mod, and MP cost and there is no change in damage with the changing moon phases.

This has been known as soon as it came out, so if you wanted to challenge the popular opinion, maybe you should get it and test it your damn self.

[Maxxthepenguin]

I know it "sux", what i want to know is "why?", i don't need lolanswers like you just did Krazy (it doesnot make things better) but thks anyways for the effort to answer

On another topic, does anyone made any tests between Enkidu mittens and Alkyoneus on Big3 ? (the test shown on thread attached .jpg shows only between Alky/Pallas/cust/homam)

I use Enkidu.

Alky might be better for TW and EP stuff but the 10 more DEX (DEX is a mod for the big 3, STR is for Frip and Dissev) and 10 more acc (including acc from dex) make Enkidu's generally better despite missing the 7 STR which will add more to your peak damage.

Asuran is just terrible people. It takes actual time to cast, seems to have a low "attack" value, and has a terrible stat mod (AGI).

[Repairs]

On another topic, does anyone made any tests between Enkidu mittens and Alkyoneus on Big3 ? (the test shown on thread attached .jpg shows only between Alky/Pallas/cust/homam)

Big three generally depend on 1 main thing: your accuracy. Do you have enough accuracy? Sushi/songs/rolls/gear? If so, Alky will give best results. If you are lacking the support/food/gear, then enkidu will give you more consistent results. This is why there isn't a best gear list for the big 3 - it all depends on your accuracy.

Edit: STR is what your looking for to increase you damage. It effects 2 parts of the damage equation. Dex only effects 1. Unless you are talking about a mob that you have capped fstr (maybe a level 45ish or lower mob).

[Repairs]

Alky might be better for TW and EP stuff but the 10 more DEX (DEX is a mod for the big 3, STR is for Frip and Dissev) and 10 more acc (including acc from dex) make Enkidu's generally better despite missing the 7 STR which will add more to your peak damage.

Alky's will win in almost all situations in terms of damage - as long as you have the proper amount of accuracy (food + songs/rolls). Alky's becomes less potent to the point of being worse then enkidu, the lower the level of the mob. I.e. once you've capped fstr, then the -dex from alky hurts your damage - but that's if you're fighting something like a level 65 mob or lower.

[Kaslo]

Alky's will win in almost all situations in terms of damage - as long as you have the proper amount of accuracy (food + songs/rolls). Alky's becomes less potent to the point of being worse then enkidu, the lower the level of the mob. I.e. once you've capped fstr, then the -dex from alky hurts your damage - but that's if you're fighting something like a level 65 mob or lower.

And if your fighting mobs >65 you would probably be better off with the ACC from Enkidu, hence greater on either side of of 65 and thus better overall

[Repairs]

And if your fighting mobs >65 you would probably be better off with the ACC from Enkidu, hence greater on either side of of 65 and thus better overall

From my tests on soloing imps this past month, Alky is still the best. Same with limited test from Nyzul and Sea/sky farming. But like I said, you need to have the accuracy (food/songs/rolls/gear).

IMO, you should have plenty of accuracy from other gear + food that loosing 7 str is more of a hindrance. You can make up for the 5 accuracy (+2 from dex) and 4 dex in so many other places (neck, earrings, weapons, etc.). Acient Torque covers the difference for me.

But like everything else in this game, shit is situational - so there is no 1 best piece for everyone. I have 3 sets that I switch from depending on what I'm fighting.

[Havok]

you're losing out on 10 dex by using alky's, not 4.

it's the same reason i use hecatomb hands for things like rampage, raging rush, drakesbane, etc, rather than alkys

[Alistaire]

MP Drainkiss: 75BLU/15SCH, Carrion Worm, East Ronfaure S.
58+1 INT, 41 Dark Magic, No Dark Arts:
89, 113, 106.

Same conditions as above other than Dark Arts, 246 Dark Magic:
88, 100, 128.
All six casts in my amazing sample size were done Watersday.

I know, shit sux, need more casts, etc.
But personally I don't think it effects it.

I do BLU/SCH in campaign a lot, never seen any MP Drainkisses beyond normal expectations. (Half-recast Aspir is nice though.)

[Repairs]

you're losing out on 10 dex by using alky's, not 4.

it's the same reason i use hecatomb hands for things like rampage, raging rush, drakesbane, etc, rather than alkys

For Ws that can crit, dex is a really good choice. Blu spells don't crit, so you are using dex for the mod. Would you use 10 INT if it was a mod for rampage,etc and skip 7 str?

Guesstimations based on known formulas and actual tests show that alky wins for fren/dis (in my situation).

[Masamune]

Mmm thank you for asuran answers guys, i missed the agi mod somewhere < <

As for the enkidu/alky topic, im using atm Alky, working on Denali feet and enkidu hands/legs/Cap, so im far from the accuracy yu have Repairs, and i'm talking about fighting stuff 70+, not below.

As for my current fr/dissy gears i'm using:
Perdu/Ifrit (Nightmare sword @ Night)
Str2 RSEelv ammo
Ohat
AF1+1 jubbah
Alky
AF2 legs
Blood feet
Chiv. Chain
Amemet+1
Rajas/Triumph
Suppa/??? (dont have Pixie or triumph)
Warwolf Belt

which put out some decent dmg but kinda inconsistent to my taste/feeling, in terms of wide range of numbers, which led me to the question about Enkidu gears and DenaliFeet, to the point of the hands slot : Alky or Enkidu Mittens...

Judging by answers here looks like ill be better off using alky on my other jobs and use enkidu mitts instead on BLU for w/e Phys spell right ?

Edit: yes Havoc good example, i'm using Heca Hands on rampage RR etc... except one ws Steel Cyclone with Alky, thank you i didnot thought about that example earlier

[WraithLakshmi]

Just a thought about Physical Potency merits, please forgive me if this has been suggested before.

Maybe this merit doesn't effect actual damage, but enhances the additional effects of spells.

For instance, longer stun on Head Butt, longer poison duration on Disseverment, higher crit% on Sickle Slash, and so on.

[Ambir]

I know it "sux", what i want to know is "why?", i don't need lolanswers like you just did Krazy (it doesnot make things better) but thks anyways for the effort to answer

A multiplier of 0.625 vs 1.25-1.5 for Frenetic Rip, Hysteric Barrage and Disseverment would be my guess...

[arus2001]

Why would anyone fighting IT imps tell you that? Does everyone fighting IT imps have an INT gear set they've been testing headbutt with or something? Has there been any conclusive test done on this subject?

Well, when I was taking BLU to 75, it really felt like when I was fighting IT stuff that the Head Butt stun wouldn't land as often or as long as a T or VT or mob. This seemingly became more prevalent when fighting BLM types ranging from Anticans in the late 40s, Goblins in the 60s, and Imps in the 70s. Carry this over to mobs who seemingly have no real Stun resistance (Be it the black magic version or our own Temporal Shift), but HB is still flaky, and something's gotta be up somewhere. The only real common trend in many cases is the target is expected to have high INT, either as a BLM type, or as a high-end HNM.

There's a possibility it could simply be related to Blue Magic skill, but since we only have AF body and Relic head to up us outside of merits, testing it on the things that can be consistently irksome to a 75 doesn't give us a whole lot of variety. I seem to recall back in the day that you could SA HB and stun Kirin, but I don't know if that's still the case.