EverQuest II Wizards Guide

EverQuest II Wizards Guide by Telcontari71

(I have looked long and hard for a wizard guide and not finding anything suitable, I created one.  Please let me know of any mistakes or updates – Nimrodel Telcontar, L52 Wizard on Runnyeye and Co-GL of Ascended Heroes)

Wizards are masters of the elements.  We unleash the elements of fire and ice to wreak devastation on enemies.   We really come into our own in groups with our line of devastating direct damage spells as well as utility spells.  To date on single mobs, wizard is the best class.

We do not solo quite as well as summoners,but with our crippling roots and deadly nukes, any solo^ mobs up to yellow should be petrified – rightfully so as soon it will be frozen to death or cremated to ashes.

I have personally found this a very rewarding class to play and I still have a lot of fun with my toon at 53.

Building your character via Character & Racial Traits:
As a wizard, when you build your character, there are only 2 things you need to worry about.  INT and Power Pool.  The more INT you have, the more power you get, and the more damage your spells land for. Always quest for more INT.  INT caps at 7x your level, so you can have a max of 420 INT before the INT will not have any affect.

After INT, always choose traits that give you a better in combat power regeneration.  And finally choose traits that give you a better power pool.   When it comes to resistances, you are the master for heat and cold and your buffs will give you a lot of resistance for these two type of attacks, so try to work up other resistances like poison, mental, magic, and diseases. If you cannot choose any of these traits, choose agility to boost avoidance or wisdom to boost resistances.

Equipping your character:
There is only one determining factor when choosing items, does it have INT or not.  If you are a pure group person, the really this should be your paramount concern.  If you want a balance, try getting items that give you a more balance in other areas.

At L40, the first set you want to try and acquire is the Tundra Gear.  Each of these pieces can be bought for a few gold or be farmed from the mobs in Everfrost.  A complete tundra set will give you better INT than a T5 rare set: However, your ability to solo will be low.   Also it will boost a lot on the cold resists.

Most of the imbued rare wood wands make a good primary weapon of choice matched with a secondary item that boosts INT.  When it comes to jewellery, again you guessed it, anything that offers more INT.

Heritages & Must Do Quests for Wizards:
The Haddens Earring:  Nice earring with under water breathing.  Very useful utility item.
By hook of by…:   (For Heirophant’s Crook:  An nice 2 handed Staff)
Stein of Moggok:   It Can be rebuilt (For Stein of Moggok, a nice secondary slot item)
Tartons Rod:  This is one of the best secondary slot item.  At 53 I still use it, and while not a heritage highly recommeneded.
Foombys Stone Goods:   A nice large bag with with weight reduction.
An Eye for Power:  Torbins Mystical Eyepatch.  Nice headpiece with good INT.
Saving Soles:  Golden Efreeti Boots (Nice boots with INT and in combat power regen)

Creature Mastery Spell Choices:
Without going into too much detail on how and why, my choices are listed below.  These are the most popular choices.  I chose them because I still fight these mobs at L52 and since combat upgrade, these nukes scale very well in damage.  Also I will tell you that you will encounter each of these mobs in the new desert of flames expansion.

My choices are Gnoll, Skeleton, Giant, Goblin, Lizardmen.

Please note that if you are freeport based, you will probably have a great utility if you picked orc as these are the probably the first mobs you see.

Training Master Spell Choices:
At level 14 and every 10 levels there after you get choice to upgrade one of four spells you have learnt in the last ten levels to upgrade to a Master II level.

Level 14:  Conflagration, Blaze, Painful Meditation, Freezing Whorl.
Most people will go with conflagaration or blaze.  I would recommend Conflagaration for nice PBAE damage. Blaze gets upraded too fast.

Level 24:  Chilling Wing, Ball of Fire, Amplification, Breath of Tyrant
Most people should go with Ball of Fire.  Until Level 37 when you get your Ball of Flames, this is the best DD nuke for you.

Level 34:  Heat Stroke, Surge of Flames, Intromission, Freezing Wind
Most people should go with Freezing Wind.  This will be you best AE DoT until L48 when you get Icy Wind.

Level 44:  Hand of Tyrant, Vital Flow, Flame Strike, Inferno.
The choice here is a bit tough.  Flame strike is very good, its very fast casting and has fast recast timer.  Inferno is a very good AE.  I personally went with flame strike as I had inferno at Adept III.  If you have both at Adept III, then Hand of Tyrant is not a bad choice.  +13 INT over the Adept 1.  What would you give to upgrade to a +13 INT item?  This one is free.

Level 54:  Protoflame, Ball of Incineration, Frostshield, Fists of Tyrant
This is a again a tough choice.  Fists of  tyrant gives you +69 INT helping all your other spells, but Ball of Incineration becomes deadly at 1450 to 2100 DD.  Go with Ball of Incineration.  I am going to go with that one.

Spell Lines:
Note about spells.  L1-L50 spells are gained by experience.  L35 Ice Flame is crafted by a sage as part of the Bloodlines Adv. Pack.  Word of Force is a Splitpaw spell at L20 and can be bought after earning the trust of the SP Gnolls.  L51-L60 spells are all bought from merchants in Majdul as a Desert of Flames expansion.

I have broken down spells into spell lines rather than levels as this is a lot more meaningful for most people.   If there are any inaccuracies, please let me know.

Post combat upgrade, the quality of spells become important.  You should try to get all spells Adept 1 with a few exceptions.  Some you really want at Adept III.  In later version, I will hopefully colour code this to indicate must have Adept 1s and 3s.

Point Blank AOE (PBAOE):These spells when launched will affect all targets around a wizard.  This does not require targets to be grouped.  It will land on all aggro and non-aggro mobs around the wizard so use with care.

Conflararation (14), Pyre (2, Inferno (44), Fiery Inferno (5
Instant Heat Damage to enemies around the wizard.

Numbing Cold (52)
AE Snare that slows targets with a proc that has a chance to root them.

Group AE:
This will affect all targets in a group, Maximum of 5 targets.

Lightning Flash (22), Pulsing Flash (36), Shocking Flash (50)
Deals heat damage over time to the group (Maximum of 5 Targets)

Chilling Wind (20), Freezing Wind (34), Icy Wind (4
Deals cold damage over time to the group (Maximum of 5 Targets)

Ring of Cold (40), Ring of Ice (54)
This is a group root.  Each hostile spell has a chance of breaking the root.

Buffs:
Magis Shielding (3)
Class buff that provides power and improves defense and focus skills.  Never have it off as ti does not even cost a Conc slot now..

Amplification (21), Intensify (35), Augmentation (49)
A group concentration buff that increases party power pool plus heat and cold resists.

Vivid Seal, Dazzling Seal, Hand of Tyrant (40), Fists of Tyrant (54)
A group concentration buff Increases strength and intelligence of the party

Coldshield (20), Chillshield (35), Frostshield (50)
Proc cast on anyone. A 100% chance to do cold damage upon melee hits that triggers up to 3 times.

Flame Tongue, Fiery Grandeur (3, Blazing Grandeur (53)
Proc cast on anyone. Gives you a chance to do heat damage with your melee weapons

Surge of Flames (32), Fiery Surge (46), Inferno Surge (60)
Proc cast on anyone. Gives you a chance to do more heat damage when your spell lands.

Accord, Concurrence (35), Singularity (47)
Proc cast on anyone (can only be cast on one person). Gives chance to return power back when hit in melee combat.

Frostbound Gift, Icebound Gift (49)
It’s a group buff. It procs for additional cold damage when mob is hit with non hit, non melee spells.

Snowbound Step(24)
A group buff that allows group members to see invsibility and confers underwater vision.

Defuff:
Freezing Whorl (13), Icy Coil (27), Piercing Icicles (41), Artic Icicles (55)
It Deals cold damage over time and debuffs the mob for heat and cold resistance.

Single Target Spells:
(Single Target, our class specialty)

Blazing Intimidation (27), Paralyse (44), Incapacitate (5
Deals instant heat damage and stuns the target

Benumb (30), Enfeeblement (3, Lapse (52)
Instantly interrupts and stifles a target.

Boreal (25), Aurora (39), Nimbus Aurora (53)
Mezzes a target and takes it away from any AE damage. Wizard is stunned, but the spell can be cancelled early.  Any direct damage will break the mezz.

Frozen Manacles(19), Tether (33), Truss (45)
Roots the target.  Each damage take by the target can break the root.

Heats Stroke (31), Heat Convulsions (45), Fiery Convulsions (59)
Does heat damage over time with a chance to stifle the target

Breath of Tyrant (21), Immolation (3, Cremate (52)
Does instant heat damage and then slow heat damage over time.

Ball of Fire (23), Ball of Flames (37), Ball of Incineration (51)
Does instant massive heat damage.

Plasma Strike, Plasmatic Pulse, Flamestrike (43), Sunstrike (57)
Does instant heat damage.  Very fast casting and fast refresh.

Word of Force (20)
Splitpaw spell (same time as strike line) but does heat damage with chance to do cold.

Ice Comet (50)
Does massive cold damage (In Excess of 4K at L50 with Adept III)

Protoflame (4
Summons a fiery pet to help you.  Has limited hit points and upon death causes AE heat damage.

Forge of Ro (55)
Summons a wall of fire.  This fire wall does not move but any one near the wall will take damage.

Surging Tempest (5
Magic based nuke that does of DD, cast knock backs and blurs visions.

Icy Flame (35)
Bloodlines spell that does instant cold and heat damage.

Utility Spell Lines:
Summon Shadows (1
Makes you invisible to anything that cons yellow and below.  Be careful, some mobs will see through invisibility.

Essence Harvest (2, Vitalic Harvest (42), Vitalic Reaping (56)
Stuns wizard while regenerating mana.  This spell can be cancelled early.

Discretionary Flow (30), Vital Flow (41), Vital Flood (54)
Instantly converts some portion of health to mana.

Intromission (33), Essential Intromission (47)
Feeds mana to a party member.

Portal (24), Depart (3
Evac line of spells.  The first evacs just the wizard, the latter evacs the whole party.

Combat Strategies
Before I start with these, there is no set rules that work in all circumstance.  Each encounter is unique, and require you to adapt these general tactics.  I have listed our entire arsenal of spells so understand them well and use them. Also please not that a lot depends on your hunting style.  Some people like more face to face time style and will take a few hits to burn mobs faster, other prefer a more clinical approach.

Solo Encounters:

You should have no problems with solo mobs single white^.  The usual tactic is root the mob, launch your debuff followed by you best nuke.  Check to see if root is breaking.  Just rook and nuke.  This should work for most cases.  If the mob is very grey that it cannot hit you, then do not worry about rooting, just nuke and use the shield line to do reactive damage to the mobs.  As an alternate to this, another strategy is to:
1. Pick a location far as far from the mob as you can and stil cast your big nuke
2. Cast your big nuke
3. Stun
4. Root
5. Move back
6. Wait for your big nuke (and stun if you want to be very safe)
7. Re-root
8. repeat 6, 7 while stun/rooting when needed.

Some people use debuffs to debuff the mob, however as debuffs also have dot components they have a chance to break the root.  Other do not use debuff.  I would recommend you try both approaches before you decided if you want to add debuffs to your mix.

With a group of 2 mobs, you plan is again simple.  Root one mob, and then stun the next one. Root the second mob and try to kill it quick.  After which, root the first one again and nuke it.

It becomes more challenging with a group of 3.  If you have your group root line, use that and then burn them mobs down one at a time.  If the root breaks, the re-root them using your single root and kill them.  Then check the time limit left on group root spell, if necessary re-cast and then take the mobs down one at a time.  If you do not have group root line, the its matter of root one, stun the next and root it, and then take the third one out quick.

For situation where you are dealing with more than 3 mobs, do not to this without a group root line.  If the mobs are very grey and you can take the hits then do so.  Againt group root, and then burn them down one at a time.

Role in Group:
You role is create as much mayhem and chaos on the mob as possible.  On any encounter, wait till the MT has pulled the mob.  Cast your debuff, and the cast shield on the MT.  Then soften the mob with a coupe of quick spells from the strike line and then you are ready for you big nukes and dots from Immolation & BoF lines.   Also every 20 sec, remember to use the shield for your MT.  This will keep giving them nice reactive aggro so that you do not draw aggro on yourself.

If it is a group of mobs, your AE lines come into play.  However be careful.  You always have to keep your threat level below the MT.  If you are grouped with a Paladin, ask them to cast the redemption line on you.  This will accrue part of your hate to the MT and then you can really nuke away hard.  Be careful though and adapt to the group MT.  If you are not getting aggro then you can progressively work up to more damaging spell early on.

Remember in long fights, you have the ability to do some mana transfer to your healers as well as do some mana feeding to yourself.  Additionally, you have the capability to evac your whole party if things go bad.

Remember that you can always use your pet to pull a tricky mob and then let MT get the aggro.  The hate generation of the pet is low so MT should be able to get aggro back.  If you are fighting a long fight, then remember last thing you want is to be OOM very quickly.  Steadily pace yourself, once the mobs goes OOM, then you can unleash your full arsenal to get maximum damage.

Remember who you are and what your role is.  You are the best caster for damage against single mobs and can do devastating damage when shielded being a main tank.

Happy Adventuring!