The Elves of WAR: Meet the Sorceress

Do dark magical forces beckon you? It could be that the Dark Elf Sorceress -- Sorcerer for males -- is just the class for you in Warhammer Online, so long as you don't mind being an Elf. The Sorceress is -- for all intents and purposes -- your typical mage-type class. Don't take that statement at face value, though. There is a nice twist to the class that helps keep things interesting while you nuke the snot out of everything in sight. The difference between, say, a Sorceress and an Archmage is the disdain for any adherence to the balancing act with magical energies. Where a High Elf crafts her magic with a careful touch, a Sorceress steals as much as she can and flings all of it at her enemies at once. This doesn't come without a risk, of course.

This is where the Dark Magic (DM) mechanic comes into play. The more you use magic spells that build Dark Magic, the bigger your risk of backfire grows. However, you also gain a higher chance to get criticals. Of course, once you get a backfire your built up DM empties out. If you're at full health, the idea of a backlash may not sound too dangerous. However, in the heat of RvR or during a nasty Public Quest, you may find yourself facing a choice between winning a battle and succumbing to death.

Here's the table for the Dark Magic mechanic build-up:

• 1-10: +5% Critical, +10% Backlash
• 11-30: +10% Critical, +20% Backlash
• 31-70: +20% Critical, +40% Backlash
• 71-90: +40% Critical, +80% Backlash
• 91-100: +50% Critical, +100% Backlash

The Sorceress' first five levels' worth of spells, listed in the order they're gained:

• Level 1 - Chillwind: Instant cast, 100ft range, builds 5 DM. A Curse which deals 72 Corporeal damage to your target over 9 seconds. Has a chance to backlash!
• Level 1 - Doombolt: 3s cast, 100ft range, builds 10 DM. A massive burst of dark power which deals 80 Corporeal damage. Has a chance to backlash!
• Level 1 - Dhar Wind: 1s cast, 5s cooldown, consumes all DM. You expel all of your build-up DM in a deadly blast, dealing damage based on the amount of DM that you possesed.
  1-10: 5dmg
  11-30: 10dmg
  31-70: 20dmg
  71-90: 40dmg
  91-100: 50dmg
• Level 2 - Gloomburst: 1s cast, 5s cooldown, 100ft range, builds 25 DM. A quick-casting spell that deals 45 spirit damage.
• Level 3 - Shroud of Darkness: Instant cast, 60s cooldown. You draw shadows close to you, increasing all of your resistances by 9 for 15 seconds.
• Level 4 - Dread Aspect: Instant cast, 15s cooldown, 100ft range. Detaunt your target, causing them to deal 50% less damage to you for 15s. Attacking anyone you detaunt will end the effect.
• Level 5 - Surging Pain: Instant cast, builds 20 DM. Waves of agony roll outwards from you, dealing 20 Corporeal damage to all enemies within 30 feet. Has a chance to cause Backlash!

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