First Impressions

[Bolty]

Do you have frost nova yet Bolty? I understand one of the best ways of dealing with more than one monster is to hit the first monster as much as possible and when they get close to you to frostnova and retreat.

I do have frost nova, yes. It doesn't do much damage, though (20 points average compared to Fireball's 75 average). It helps to chill the monsters, but consider this scenario: a ranged attacker and a melee attacker hitting me at the same time. I can Frost Nova the melee guy, but the combination of the slow melee'ers attacks and the full-speed ranged attacks prevent me from getting off a spell. I have to stand still to cast. What do I do?

I run. I die, because the monsters run faster than me. Respawn. Repeat. :) And, keep in mind, this is in a GROUP! Groups don't help, because the monsters are smarter than the Diablo fodder we all know and love. Just because a character is tanking doesn't mean that I can cast spells with impunity ala D2 style. No, in this game, when a tank is fighting a monster and I cast a spell on them, 50% of the time they'll break off and come after me. While I admire such AI (it's nice to see smart monsters realize that they can pound the weak mage fast and get back to the melee guy later), it sure doesn't help me live.

Most of the time, when I group, I die first. I simply have less hit points and can't take the damage...I've seen group members say "oh boy, a mage! Any bets on how long he lasts?" when I join parties! Heh!

I shall valiantly keep plugging away, though!

-Bolty