Spells/Point Blank Area of Effect Direct Damage
From GaherisWiki
Point Blank Area of Effect Direct Damage Spells aka "PBAE" are the highest damage spells in the game.
The four classes that get a traditional PBAE are Suppression Spiritmasters, Mana Eldritches, Mana Enchanters, and Ice Wizards.
Additionally Verdant Animists get a pet based PBAE that will cause their pet to cast a body-damage PBAE centered at the pet, Death Servant Necromancers get a similar pet based PBAE that is Spirit damage, and Phantasmal Wail Bainshees get a pulsing PBAE chant. All of these have lower delves than their traditional counterparts. Hexing Warlocks also get a PBAE that has a similar delve to the traditional PBAEs but are incapable of casting it as fast.
Which class is better?
This is a source of constant debate. Spiritmasters have the highest level and delve PBAE spell. Their last PBAE is at 49 Suppression and has a delve of 331. Their Spirit damage also in general is less resisted in PvE than Energy and Cold. Spiritmasters also get an intercepting pet, which with dexterity buffs will increase in intercepting chances, making them less likely to get hit, and the most group friendly.
Mana Enchanters get both PBAE and Focus Shield in the same spell line, making them capable of soloing better than any of the other PBAE classes. Many players, though, complain about the retina burning nature of the Enchanter (and Eldritch) PBAE spell effect, and often play with spell effects off. Their PBAE at 48 Mana Spec has a delve of 325 Energy Damage. Energy, in general, seems to be the most resisted of the damage types. Mana Enchanters also get a healing pet in their Underhill Ally that can potentially save groups, and the caster.
Ice Wizards and Mana Eldritches get no pet, and are mostly noted in that they have stronger Direct Damage spells. Both clases get snare nukes, the Mana Eld also gets a AE Snare Nuke, while the Ice Wizard gets a Damage and Debuff spell and a AE Damage and Debuff, on top of strengthening their baseline Ice DD. These two specs are more common on the Blue Servers then on Gaheris though. Using the AE Cold Debuff as Wizard helps a lot. After the resists from the mobs are lowered they rarely resist the PBAE anymore and die very fast.
PBAE and Protect
While the exact mechanics of how it works are unknown, it is known that protect alters the mechanics of aggression generation on the PBAER in a way that makes them much more likely to gain the focus of the monster. This in general tends to lead to the PBAER dying more often. While multiple theories abound the two most common are that PBAE damage aggression is normally shared among the group, but when protect is used, it is not. The other theory is that there is little to no distance component to PBAE agression, because the caster is so close to the monsters, but using protect changes the aggression code used, making the PBAER much more likely to gain aggression.
Either way it is not recommended to protect the PBAER, and PBAERs should request that any tanks that accidently protect them remove it right away.
Protect is not the friend of the PB class. This is because the function of the protect ability is to *share* the aggro of the person being protected between them and the *protecter*. While the exact math is unknown, it *is* known that the protecter takes less than half the aggro from the protected person. Therefore in order to maintain aggro the protecter must do some damage to make up for this shortfall.
EXAMPLE (These are summized figures .. dont quote them!)
Protect III takes 45% of aggro. Caster does 1000dmg <therefore> protecter must do at least 101dmg to maintain aggro.
Protect credits caster with 55% (550dmg) and protector with 45% (450dmg) therefore tank must do 101 to maintain the edge.
Easy enough with 1 MoB ... but when a PB class does 1000 Dmg to 5 MoBs .. the tank cannot maintain that 101dmg to all five MoBs at the speed the PB class can dish it out. Hence PB gets aggro and dies.
The PB spells inherently spread aggro among the group. The caster does take a *small* edge in the aggro but because it inherently spreads across the group other group members find it easier to maintain at least some aggro from the PB class. (Still warrents a guard though as PB *will* get aggro) - Valkriin
