|
Mesmer Fast Casting Guide |
Each class gets an attribute that you can utilize only if you choose the class as your primary class. If you choose Mesmer as your primary class you gain access to the attribute known as Fast Casting. Fast Casting is an attribute that if you choose to apply attribute points to it, it will reduce the casting time of all spells that the mesmer casts.
So, if I was playing a mesmer I would like to know what the optimum value of the attribute would be so that I got the most "bang for my buck" so to say. Please refer to the chart below, the chart represents the value of the fast casting attribute, and the reduction in casting time you get with certain base casting times.
Points in Fast Casting
| .5 Seconds
| 1 Seconds
| 2 Seconds
| 3 Seconds
| 4 Seconds
| 5 Seconds
| 6 Seconds
| 8 Seconds
| | 0 | .50
| 1.00
| 2.00
| 3.00
| 4.00
| 5.00
| 6.00
| 8.00
| | 1 | .48
| .96
| 1.92
| 2.87
| 3.83
| 4.79
| 5.75
| 7.66
| 2
| .46
| .92
| 1.83
| 2.75
| 3.67
| 4.59
| 5.50
| 7.34
| | 3 | .44 | .88
| 1.76
| 2.63
| 3.51
| 4.39
| 5.27
| 7.03
| | 4 | .42
| .84
| 1.68
| 2.52
| 3.36
| 4.20
| 5.05
| 6.73
| 5
| .40
| .81
| 1.61
| 2.42
| 3.22
| 4.03
| 4.83
| 6.44
| 6
| .39
| .77
| 1.54
| 2.31
| 3.08
| 3.86
| 4.63
| 6.17
| 7
| .37
| .74
| 1.48
| 2.22
| 2.95
| 3.69
| 4.43
| 5.91
| | 8 | .35
| .71
| 1.41
| 2.12
| 2.83
| 3.54
| 4.24
| 5.66
| 9
| .34
| .68
| 1.35
| 2.03
| 2.71
| 3.39
| 4.06
| 5.42
| 10
| .32
| .65
| 1.30
| 1.95
| 2.59
| 3.24
| 3.89
| 5.19
| | 11 | .31
| .62
| 1.24
| 1.86
| 2.48
| 3.10
| 3.73
| 4.97
| 12
| .30
| .59
| 1.19
| 1.78
| 2.38
| 2.97
| 3.57
| 4.76
| | 13 | .28
| .57
| 1.14
| 1.71
| 2.28
| 2.85
| 3.42
| 4.56
| | 14 | .27
| .55
| 1.09
| 1.64
| 2.18
| 2.73
| 3.27
| 4.36
| 15
| .26
| .52
| 1.04
| 1.57
| 2.09
| 2.61
| 3.13
| 4.18
| | 16 | .25
| .50
| 1.00
| 1.50
| 2.00
| 2.50
| 3.00
| 4.00
|
So, what does this chart tell us? With 16 points in fast casting all spell casting times are cut in half. If we are casting a spell that requires 8 seconds to cast, with 16 points in Fast Casting it will take 4 seconds, half as long. This is a good thing, right?
Well, it depends on what you are wanting to accomplish. Certainly if I have a mesmer template that is very intensive on skills that have a very long casting time, I would want to invest the attribute points into fast casting so that on the battlefield the mesmers aren't spending so much time casting. In the heat of battle the difference in casting a big spell in 4 seconds opposed to 8 seconds is huge. However, the difference between half a second and a .25 of a second isnt as significant. I know there would be people that present the arguement that any reduction in time casting is an increase in the dps of the character, however I feel that in a template revolving around low-cast time spells, the attribute points are better spent in making the spells more effective, not faster casting.
Another problem someone would run into with fast casting is the fact that time intensive spells often are very costly in terms of mana. If we can cast those spells in half the time as it would cost us, then potentially we would cast the spell twice in the time, costing us twice the mana. This can become costly quickly and would require a disciplined mesmer to prevent using up all his mana. If a caster uses all their mana, they are useless.
|
