Damage spells don't seem to be balanced very well in regards to their circles. Shadow Bolt is way better than Blackthorns (which is utter crap), and slightly worse than Spook. Spook is comparable or slightly better in damage than Shadow Magic, with the bonus chance of stun and noticeably faster cast/more mems. In other words, my experience says that nuke usefulness is in this order, best to worst:
Spook (4th), Shadow Bolt (1st), Shadow Magic (5th), Blackthorns (2nd)
Definitely doesn't seem balanced when the 1st circle nuke is better than 2nd, and 4th circle is better than the 5th. Suggested changes:
- Improve Blackthorns by either making it a bolt-type spell that increases in quantity with levels up to 3 or 4 bolts at level xx, or giving it a non-damage side effect.
- Do something, anything, about Shadow Magic. The damage is poor, the casting time is slow and there's no extra benefit like the stun component of Spook. Furthermore, globe seems to eat the spell when it's disguised as Shocking Grasp.
Displacement seems a bit odd as well. It appears to just nullify x amounts of attacks from an opponent instead of avoiding a hit that would land, which means that it rarely lasts more than a few rounds against anything with double attack or better. I believe a defensive skill attempt (dodge, parry, riposte, shield block etc.) should be possible before checking for displacement, and if successful, the defender shouldn't lose a "hit" on their displacement buff. I was grouped with various tanks yesterday and their displacements expired faster than I could memorize them, against one mob at a time. I also suspect that the following problem exists, although I could be wrong: A tank can't increase defensive skills while displaced. I'm just guessing here but the way the code seems to work, if a mob is always missing a tank because a spell prevents it from hitting, that tank won't get to make his defensive skill checks and thus won't notch.
Shade pets and dopplegangers will occasionally stop following for no apparent reason. Once in a while my summoned shade just ceases all actions and refuses orders, forcing me to abandon it and summon a new. Dopplegangers sometimes just stop and stand around, not because the duration ends (upon which they disappear) but possibly because they run out of movement points. If that's the case, it makes no sense and they should be given infinite movement or walk at no cost.
Shade pets can be paralyzed by things like carrion crawler poison. I think a line from the shade's desc will suffice to explain my point:
A dark shade wrote:The being is made entirely of shifting gray mists.