Finale + Burst questions

Considering l will be using both finale n burst (depending on what is needed when),

1) Is it better to use just one :
1s+S staff [Int10%, Matk10%, Int+20, Dex/Cspd (whatever % is cap)] (assumed matk : 4.6k matk)
Or
Multiple staves that are Ns+B with Int10%, Matk10%, Ele, DTE14-18% l will be statting n refining self @-@)

2) What proves more benefical?
Using shield (only Pdef used) or MD (with MW book (only magic mastery n resonance?)?
On that note, if l do use md instead of shield, will it allow to use Dancer skills? (It does say md can, but not sure as main or sub)

3) are Decoy (proration?) and Spell burst(crit) necessary? Not really after 100% crit really

4) Magic pierce will help with burst, right?

5) what stat seems better with 'Int' in this case?

Thats all for now l guess -w-; )..
Cuz at around 190, sp will be hardly spared (might even overshoot)

Note :
Anyone kind nuff to point out 2-3 most common elements among bosses while leveling 190-215..(short on mana so farming n stating staves will take while, so elements statted by priority) .

 

My opinion is:

1) The former choice is only slightly better if you're using Finale more often than Burst, and if your wallet is crying. The latter is the opposite, since Burst can have its element changed base on weapon, while Finale is locked to Neutral, so Burst has the element advantage. And yeah more staves = bigger wallet required.

2) Not sure about this. I think Shield for better survival, while MD with Resonance let you not have to MP Charge + Maximizer as frequently. Also u can receive bonus stats from shield, while MD sub gives you nothing other than being able to use Resonance.
And about the latter, yeah MD do allow you to use Dancer skills even as sub weapon. I tested on my magic gunner, and I can use Dancer skills just fine despite bowgun alone isn't able to use Dancer skills.

3) Decoy Shot is not for proration, it doesn't prorate at all. Its only and most important benefit that makes people want it is that the decoy's attacks recover MP like normal attacks, allowing you to recover MP even without your character normal attacking at all, as long as the enemy is within the decoy's attack range. But as a mage, your attack speed is not gonna be fast, and your AMPR isn't as high as most physical characters, and mages also has MP Charge and Maximizer, so Decoy Shot isn't really necessary. And if you don't have at least 100% crit rate, your decoy is gonna miss a lot unless you use Mind's Eye tag, and if Decoy attack misses, no MP will be recovered.
Spell Burst only convert 25% of your crit rate into magic crit rate so you're gonna need a hell lot of crit rate for it. So if you're not aiming for a crit mage build with a fck ton of crit rate then I think you should not spend 30 skill points for Spell Burst.

4) Dunno.

5) If you're not aiming to be crit mage and your char is already not a farm mage, then either VIT for better survivability, or DEX for a little more MATK and a lot more CSPD.

 

I see!
Thanks alot!
1) While wallet may not be exactly crying alot..
..my mana reserves sure as hell are xD
So farming/statting will take alot of time..which..frankly l dread imagining, but duly noted! (Had l not been busy during ss event, it wont have been a prob)

2) so..md yea or nah @-@)
cuz almost all burst builds l see are using MW book for MW mastery and resonance..
[ why really..doesnt the penalty apply only for atk??]
I usually use (coffin) shield, and most used skill is pdef and shield cannon maybe? Pdef has saved me alot thou.
If md? I planned for elegant poise (atleast 1hp will remain..xD)
Unless md doesnt provide much, shield does seem better..oof

3) Yay so no decoy then?
Cuz most bosses/mini bosses move alot, and l use mp charge + maximizer alot..so..decoy being there or not wont really effect much..(25 sp saved!)
Aspd point applies too @-@) cspd aside, aspd too?!

4) l hope so -w- l plan to utilize atleast some m.pierce if possible..

5) l use Int(full)> Dex >Vit(20), overall, my mage has 6k+ hp , so unless its venena n her meteor, 95% of time l survive..

Thank you for your input!
Highly appreciated!

 

Here’s my input ^^

1) The latter will be much better for using burst against lower defence bosses. A typically statted +S staff will give slightly more finale damage and will be more useful for burst on higher difficulty bosses if you don’t have high magic pierce. Having one staff will definitely be more cost-efficient. And you can actually find a decent NPC/monster dropped staff of every element as well if you can’t afford customized ones. ^^

2) Out of shield or MD, I would personally choose MD due to the access to resonance, magic warrior mastery and dancer skills which has an alternative to p.def; elegant poise. MD will also allow you to evade more often. But in the end it’s up to you and what you will find more beneficial. Arrow and dagger sub weapons have their uses as well.

3) I would personally highly advise against using decoy with a staff. Staffs have an incredibly short auto attack range and since you need power wave at level 5 to learn maximizer, you’ll have to walk close to the boss to cast it and if the boss moves even a little, it will have no effect. MP charge + maximizer on its own will be much faster. Decoy mage works much better with MD main or Bowgun + MD due to their high auto attack ranges.

As for spellburst, if you have the skill points to spare I would learn it even if you did it invest in any critical rate. It won’t make a huge difference but it’ll just offer a small chance to boost your damage.

4) Yes, magic pierce will help with burst because it has a much lower constant than finale, which doesn’t benefit as much from magic pierce.

5) Since you’re planning to use burst, INT > DEX will likely be most promising since more cast speed will lower the amount of magic skills needed to make burst an instant cast. However since impact + finale are already 2 magic skills, you won’t need super high cast speed so it is possible to use a different sub stat, like VIT for survivability, STR for stability and critical damage, or CRT to build up critical rate for spellburst.

 

This helped clear few things!

1) I am second-guessing elemental staves idea (atleast in start) cuz the bosses l will be facing will be nm/ulti (190 n onwards) so investment in 1 staff fully seems better (as..l do like using finale alot) than going half-hearted with elementals (...dreading that farm much to consider forgo-ing DTE+14-18% n just using ele, IM Cspd stats -w-; )..
Not a huge fan of carrying so many equips either (bow arrows, dw swords, oof) @-@)..despite guild having storage.

2) Does the CSPD buff come with (1/3) resonance (buffs) alone or does MW mastery provide it too?
You are right, unless md debuffs something..like it does for other weapons..otherwise it seems ok..the evasion count increase is a bonus!

3) No offense to Decoy mage users..but decoy seems a waste to me with Mp-charge n maximizer around ._.) The points you mention further solidify that..

4) That is in my (back up) plan, since elemental staves are kind of..heavy investment, l was intending to use atleast 30% magic pierce (as p.pierce n m.pierce prove helpful in nm/ulti) along with a neutral staff (in case l drop idea for elemental set for time being..like now)

5) I am aware that 1k+ need 4 skills, 5k+ needs 2 skills(?) N 7.7k is instant cast, so my aim is to atleast get till that 5k cspd without losing much of matk. The set up l have in mind should give 3k, till 5k? I am hoping highcycle n buff covers it..

Anyway!
Your input was very helpful!
Thank you !

 

Awesome glad I could help! ^^)b MWM does passively increase CSPD a bit. I don’t remember the exact formula though...