User:Rastamon/buildarchive/Build:Me/N Soul Failure

This is a PvP build designed to make other foes impotent for long periods of time while also doing decent damage. It is very strong against foes that use mostly attacks, and it is decent against most casters, but it is not very effective against Monk primaries.

Equipment
Use Hale and of Fortitude mods on a Curses staff and a Rune of Superior Vigor to get your maximum hitpoints up to 590. Use whatever armor you prefer with Runes of Minor Fast Casting and Minor Inspiration Magic.

Usage

 * Cast the main combo of Spirit of Failure, Price of Failure, and Parasitic Bond on attackers, such as Warriors, Assassins, and Rangers.
 * Cast the secondary combo of Wither and Parasitic Bond on casters, such as Mesmers, Necromancers, Elementalists, and Monks. (Note: Monks should be a low priority for this build.)
 * Rotate from target to target continuing to maintain the two combos on your foes.
 * Use Inspired Hex on particularly damaging hexes, and then use those hexes against your foes. Inspired Hex can also be used for energy management.
 * Use Drain Enchantment as your main energy management skill. It's also great for removing enchantments, such as Illusionary Weaponry or Elemental Attunement, that are vital to the builds of your foes.
 * Use Ether Feast when you're in trouble and need a quick boost in health.


 * If 1 attacker focuses on you, make sure that the main combo is active on him. You can then ignore his presence for all intents and purposes, and immediately cast the secondary combo on the foe of your choice.
 * If 2 attackers focus on you, make sure to cast the main combo on at least one of them right away. If both of them have the main combo on them, you can ignore them until it's time to refresh the combo on them. If only one of them has the main combo on them, it is advisable to flee until your main combo is recharged. At that point, you can either continue to flee, or attempt to cast the main combo on the second foe.
 * If 3 attackers focus on you, make sure to cast the main combo on at least one of them right away, and then flee until at least 1 of the attackers changes focus.
 * If there are no attackers, the main combo will be largely unnecessary, and you can focus on spamming the secondary combo.
 * Both combos should be spammed as frequently as possible, using Inspired Hex and Drain Enchantment for energy management when necessary.

Counters

 * There are several Monk skills that can counter this build effectively: Contemplation of Purity, Convert Hexes, Purge Signet, and Holy Veil. Purge Signet has stiff energy penalties, Contemplation of Purity can only be used on the caster, and Holy Veil needs to be maintained to have the greatest effect against this build, which means that only Convert Hexes is a truly useful counter. Convert Hexes, however, has a 20 second recharge, whereas the main combo of this build has only a 10 second recharge, so Convert Hexes can only counter this build up to a point.


 * Energy denial builds are marginally effective against this build, since this build has skills to quickly regain energy.


 * Interruption builds are fairly effective against this build, unless you manage to get a combo off on them first while the focus is elsewhere. It may be desireable to add a superior rune of Fast Casting if you're having problems being interrupted. Another alternative is to take Mantra of Concentration or Mantra of Resolve to prevent interrupts.


 * Certain hexes such as Backfire could potentially cause problems for this build, but in general, this build can afford to ignore them or wait them out.

Variants

 * Spiteful Spirit can be used in place of Wither, but it's more expensive, has a shorter duration, and severely discourages the target from attacking (which is an effect already caused by Spirit of Failure and Price of Failure). Wither is also more useful against casters than Spiteful Spirit.
 * Inspired Hex and Drain Enchantment are the two optional skills.
 * Power Drain can be used for extra energy management and the ability to interrupt.
 * Soul Barbs can be used for extra damage capabilities.
 * Mantra of Concentration or Mantra of Resolve can be used to protect against interrupts.
 * Plague Touch can be used to protect against harmful conditions and transfer them to foes.
 * Malaise can be used in combination with Wither to completely shut-down the natural energy regeneration of casters.
 * Of the 5 left-over attribute points, put 3 into Illusion Magic, add a minor rune of Illusion Magic and equip Distortion. An attacker hexed with Spirit and Price of Failure will then miss you with an 86% chance, giving you a net 1 energy for each miss.
 * Reckless Haste has great synergy with the Failure hexes, increasing rate of attack and adding a further 43% chance to miss (68% miss chance in total).