Game-changing upgrades (for casters)

[Invurnus]

I'm playing my first caster on P1999, and it seems as though itemization is not as important for them as melees. Sure, a big mana pool is nice, and everyone wants survivability, but chasing that extra INT and HP seems more like a luxury than a real upgrade, at least at this stage of the game.

So instead of chasing INT and HP I focused on getting jboots, which is a legitimately huge upgrade for a wizard - a game-changer, really. My question is, what's the next game-changer, if I'm willing to save my cp's? I'm leaning towards a Tolapumj's Robe, as haste is a nice little bonus for finishing off mobs and leveling weapon skills, but beyond that...? Is a Manastone really the next big upgrade?

[Autotune]

Manastone is good if you have a prenerf fungi staff, not so great without it.

Pretty much, from what I know, Jboots + Manastone + Fungi staff = game changers for Wizards.

[Rhambuk]

manastone for a wizard doesnt seem That great, im sure it has its uses but for 300k you could get way way more stuff.

[Invurnus]

I'm curious, can any part of the Wizard epic be MQ'd? Is the big bottleneck considered to be Phinagel? I've sometimes wondered if you could hire one of the solo artist guys to take out Phinagel for you... :p

[Estu]

Staff of temperate flux is definitely a must-have. Haste is not of any importance at all - you should be using nukes to finish off mobs anyway (gives you more time to med). Manastone can be very nice if you have someone who can toss you complete heals but it is a bit of an odd choice for a wizard - then again, I don't know that there are a ton of other items that would be better.

Bottlenecks for the wizard epic are definitely NOT including Phinny, who is a minor and easy target. The bottlenecks are Venril Sathir and Cazic Thule, who are extremely high-demand targets and are only ever killed by a couple of guilds.

[Invurnus]

Yep, Staff of Temperate Flux is up soon for me. But that's free.

Thanks for the info on the epic! I always perceived VS to be a relatively easy guy to get to compared to Phinny, but then I never really was into a raiding scene on live. And certainly I have little understanding of how it works on P1999.

I guess maybe INT and HP (and resists) is really the way to go.

[Silo69]

game changer?

movement speed is always the biggest factor in the game

followed by casting while moving

then hp pool

[falkun]

I'd argue mana regeneration is at least equal to movement speed in the game-changing department. Therefore manastone + prenerf fungi staff is tits, after that you can start claiming FT items mixed in with Jboots.

[Tecmos Deception]

Realistically, game-changers for a wiz are 1) jboots and 2) enough int/mp gear that you can quad. Consumables also make a world of difference though... stuff like leatherfoot raider skullcaps for getting out of jail free, shaman cure/heal pots (no more dying to a single necro/shaman dot when solo or something!), wooly spider silk nets for instant roots, etc.

Beyond that the only things that are really "game changers" are prohibitively expensive and/or difficult to obtain, like manastone, mana robe, fungus staff, wiz epic, wiz clicky VP robe, etc.

[Swish]

Don't forget a vendor purchasable compass, you'll never be lost again.

[Ravager]

I never played a wizard, but isn't that clicky wand from Kurn's a nice thing to have?

[pharmakos]

Don't forget a vendor purchasable compass, you'll never be lost again.

lol this

costs like 3p in any newbie city. i never understood why anyone uses sense heading.

[Tecmos Deception]

I never played a wizard, but isn't that clicky wand from Kurn's a nice thing to have?

Meh.

I mean, it is more sustained damage than a wizard can put out normally, sans mana regen, until like 44+. But it also doesn't work until level 12, it is only really useful solo to kill runners since it breaks root like any real nuke does and root sucks at low levels to begin with, and it will pull aggro quite a bit in groups.

It's FAR from a "game-changing upgrade."

[Nagash]

In case you don't have one, a good beunch of friends and a goood guild are the best life changer for any class.