Druids: Kiting more than 4 mobs at once?

[AllenWalker]

So here is what I have been trying in addition to quad kiting.

Druids get 3 spells (not including the Cold based Area Rain Spell type spells) :
- Tremor Area effect Point blank Direct Damage lvl 24
- Earthquake Area Effect Point Blank Direct Damage lvl 34
- Upheaval Area effect Point blank Direct Damage lvl 51

These spells don't have the limit of 4 mobs like the lightning spells. However, you have to be close to the mobs. I have been experimenting with my enchanter friend, He AE mezzes them then I cast. Then they all clobber me. So I was thinking if a Cleric could Divine Aura's me or something like that? I have also tried rooting them all close together and casting but normally one will break, then two and have to deal with getting them rooted close to the others again.

Has anyone tried this? If so how did you do it and is it even worth it? Thank you!

- lvl 53 Druid - Walkas
(Prexus 2003-2005)

[Kich867]

I would experiment with Upheaval's maximum distance. I was AOE'ing crushbone for belts/pads earlier and noticed that when I upheaval'd on top of Emporer Crush, some orcs even at the top of the hallway leading to him died. To be clear, I mean just outside his room. The radius seems _substantially_ larger than targeted AOE spells where they have to be tightly clumped.

If all of the mobs are snared in a tight pack and you're SoW'd, I'm sure you can continue using your enchanter friend's help to AOE mez them -> Upheaval at max distance -> Immediately strafe run away (hold forward + right or left, it reduces the range enemies can hit you, this is how bards swarm kite etc).

There are also some subtle mechanics to abusing latency as well--have you ever noticed that sometimes if you cast a spell _immediately_ after you stop running you still can sometimes get interrupted? For a brief moment the server still thinks you're running. On the same note, experiment with the opposite end of that--start running just about at the end of your spell. You'll find, with timing, that you can actually start moving before the spell finishes casting and still goes off without being interrupted.

The server in this case, for a very brief moment, still thinks you're standing still.

I'd keep trying! Experiment with lower-level spells on safer targets together, maybe a place like Unrest or populated outdoor zones? This sounds like a cool system if you can get it working.

[Jimjam]

Could the enc land an pbaoe non-fragile stun as you are casting your pb aoe nuke? This would give you a few seconds to pull out of melee range again?

[Pyrion]

There are a lot of classes that have PBAE spells with a similar magnitude. Clerics, Necros, Mages, Wizards come to mind. The reason why they don't use them much is that those spells are really mana hogs. You can kill masses of deep greens with them, but not really much more.

[AllenWalker]

Originally Posted by Pyrion [You must be logged in to view images. Log in or Register.]

There are a lot of classes that have PBAE spells with a similar magnitude. Clerics, Necros, Mages, Wizards come to mind. The reason why they don't use them much is that those spells are really mana hogs. You can kill masses of deep greens with them, but not really much more.

This is correct, I tried soloing 8 raptors last night and when I ran out of mana they were all at 30% health. 600 mana is still a lot. I think with a partner this would be very doable though. (NOTE: I have 252 wisdom and very good gear)

Originally Posted by Kich867

There are also some subtle mechanics to abusing latency as well--have you ever noticed that sometimes if you cast a spell _immediately_ after you stop running you still can sometimes get interrupted? For a brief moment the server still thinks you're running. On the same note, experiment with the opposite end of that--start running just about at the end of your spell. You'll find, with timing, that you can actually start moving before the spell finishes casting and still goes off without being interrupted.

I also tried what Kich867 recommend, when the cast bar is a second or two from casting you can move backwards and the spell will still go off without interrupting.

Thank you for the responses and advice!

[Crawdad]

The only use I've found for Earthquake/PBAEs is mowing down greens and duoing with a bard. An EQ or two will really cut the time down for a bard kiting.

[AllenWalker]

UPDATE:
I tried it today with two druids, I am lvl 53 and he was lvl 54. I cast upheaval twice and got agro then he was able to line it up and cast himself. We killed 14 at once. Pretty effective. It just takes practice. They tend to change agro which was annoying. We had to re-snare once but it was our first try.

[greymouser69]

From what I learned on live back in the day, quad kiting is the safest and best option. More are possible but much more risky unless you are a bard.