PvP Talk, Question of the Week, and "The Votes Are In... Not"

It's time for... PvP Talk with your host, Swordroll! (Wait, what does Swordroll know about PvP?)

This weeks, err... month's, ah... who knows? This time around's topic involves the new Wintertusk spells and how they affect the arena, and we're going to discuss each and every school's spells and their standpoint. Keep in mind, your views may be different than mine, so PLEASE respond and tell me that I'm wrong, or should consider another view. I have yet to receive a post...

We'll start with Storm (Storm, really? Right off the bat?). Supercharge is one of those situational spells. It depends where you are. So many people call it "useless" right away, without discovering its full potential. In the Waterworks, I'll save up pips and when a blade round comes, Supercharge, have my Balance donate pips, have my Fire use elemental blade, then use a big Storm Lord. It's very effective. However, in the way of PvP, it isn't very helpful, just a "pip-eater." Now Insane Bolt is a whole new story. Insane Bolt followed by a Triton can be a very effective strategy, but Insane Bolt could very well end your match early. By the third consecutive cast, you have a 50% chance of killing yourself already, and it only gets worse. Storm, overall, stands just about in the same place as they were, not on top, not on bottom.
Next is, hmm, Ice. Ice is always changing. One minute they're on top, the next they're on bottom. Ice has lost resist in the this update and other schools have gained it. To be quite fair, they've definitely been "nerfed" with this update. They still have yet to be overpowered or underpowered though. They are horrible attackers at this point, but they can have 4300+ health while maintaining 52% universal resist, so they're nothing to laugh at. I most effective 1v1 strategy is powering up with a whole bunch of blades and using the occasional shield until you're at full pips. Then throw a Snow Angel, followed by a Frost Giant to stun your opponent and attempt to keep them from healing from the DoT. If your DoT can't kill them in this time, however, you've got to start over with practically no pips while they could heal and move on with damage. With Legion Shield, groups are going to like Ice now, even PvP group, especially in 4v4. Frozen Armor is just a joke. No one used the original, and the new one is useless considering you can heal far more efficiently. I suppose in the off chance that you had full pips, and your opponent had no pips, you could use it to "store" health if you were at full. That's actually not a bad idea...

Fire is going up in some cases, and down in others. Considering the already powerful Heckhound can now be even more so by throwing a Fuel/Boosted Amulet Fuel, Fire has improved. Power Link is also an excellent addition to a Pyromancer's deck. It is a new form of efficient damage and healing, giving them an ability similar to Death's, considering that they can now hit and heal without having to choose. Fire is fairly high on the PvP scale, but they still have some work to do.

Death is doing alright, improving now in 4v4 PvP. Imagine two death spamming Virulent Plague, an Ice spamming Legion Shield, and a Life for healing. Every one of the opponents' hits would be -70%, not including resists. Stack up on those, they fire away! Dark Pact is another one those situation spells, but don't throw it out too fast. I often quest with my Death, Fire, and Storm. Death can now provide two or three (Dark Pact, Amulet Dark Pact, treasure Dark Pact?) extra universal blades for the Storm, all the better for a quicker kill.

Myth probably got the best spell combo of any school. First Shatter. Enemy built up so many shields that they're overlapping over and over again? Shatter for a minor 3 pips and they're out of luck. This is just too bad for schools with little resist who rely on shields. Myth also gained Talos, perfect for 1v1 battles. For 5 pips, you're practically summoning another character to aid you. Myth is moving to the top of the ladder at the moment.

Life is doing well, too, with Triage. Some may not use the spell at all, but considering the DoTs are some of Fire's most valuable weapons in this modern, shield-loving world, Triage could be a huge help. Brilliant Light is a semi-useful spell, it really depends on the players in a battle. Arm four life wizards with Brilliant Light and there may be no stopping them.

Balance is likely at the top of the "PvP Chain." They can now heal as effectively or more effectively than Life and hit with extreme power. With all the new boosted blades and traps from amulets and gear, a simple two power ups and a fully pipped Judge will knock out just about any character. Storm is even easier, you only need a single power up and not even full pips. Gargantuan is obviously helpful in this situation. The key here is making sure to use plenty of Elemental/Spiritual Shields so you're killed gradually and can use that amazing new spell, Availing Hands, to heal. Though the Diffuses are very... oh, I'll say it, in my opinion, they're useless. But Availing Hands makes up for it.

That's all for this time's "PvP Talk."

It's time for the Question of the Week! The Question of the Week may be a question asked on another site, a question that I've asked or been asked in-game, or a question submitted (via comment) for consideration for Question of the Week. This week's question is: Where do I get swords like I see in the "PvP Talk" Logo? A simple question, but a common one, no less. They came from a code from an old issue of Beckett Massive Online Gamer Magazine. In order to get these Swords from older issues, you'll have to purchase Back Issue HERE. A complete guide to Beckett items can be found HERE. These, in my opinion, are some of the neatest swords available - and thank goodness they're still available! I have yet to get one, maybe one of these days...

Finally, the votes are in! Not! As you can see, our Vote Count is 0. Hmm... I guess that's about how many people read the blog. If you're reading, give it a go, subscribe, etc. (And tell your friends!)