User:Jango/Mind Blast Runner

The Mind Blast runner is a offensive support runner most typically chosen in split builds where you are fighting with only four to six men at the stand (including runner). The key to this character is spreading Mark of Rodgort across the enemy team. Mind Blast fuels Mark of Rodgort spam allowing it to be kept on a majority of the enemies. Since your allies should all have fiery weapons when this build is run, a significant amount of pressure is added through maintained burning.

Equipment

 * Full set of + Health Armor (Survivor Insignias)
 * A HCT/HSR 20% wand and HCT/HSR 20% Focus Item.
 * A +5 Energy/30HP Sword/Spear Axe with an Offhand of your choice.
 * Additional energy sets can be crafted.
 * Defensive sets can be crafted, along with weapons of Enchanting.

Team Equipment

 * Warriors, Assassins, Paragon, Rangers, and Dervishes should have fiery weapons available to them. Triggering Mark of Rodgort on their attacks greatly adds to any build's pressure.

Flag Stand

 * When with a flag stand team your primary function is running flags.
 * Between flag runs your goal is to spread Mark of Rodgort to as many targets as possible. The hex has a large AoE and is used quite often.  As such hex removal cannot efficiently combat it.
 * Use Mind Blast as often as possible to maintain energy levels. You will net 10 energy per successfully triggered Mind Blast.  Warriors are almost guaranteed to have less energy than you.  If you low energy level attempt to use 2-3 Mind Blasts on warriors  to level your energy out and then switch back to targeting enemies with lower AL. Alternatively, you can switch out a higher energy set, use Mind Blast, then switch back.  It is preferable to target enemies with Mark of Rodgort on them at the stand, but maintaining energy level is more important.
 * Fireball and Liquid Flame allow you to assist on spikes and exploit clusters of enemies. You may throw fireballs out fairly liberally due to the low recharge.  Liquid Flame should be used with slightly more discretion. They are especially effective in VoD and choke points.
 * Weapon of Warding should be placed on targets under heavy physical pressure.
 * At VoD, focus your damage on whatever enemy NPCs remain. They are easily hexed by Mark of Rodgort and enemy archers are almost always either attacking or using a skill at VoD.  Thus hitting a cluster of archers with Mark of Rodgort followed by Liquid Flame will set a large number of archers on fire.  In addition be mindful of where your bodyguard is throwing his spells.  If you can throw a Mark of Rodgort on the archers he is targeting he will constantly be refreshing the burning.

Small Team and Split

 * When separated from the main team and involved in a small split or solo fight your goal is a mix of degen and pressure. You typically want to enter these fights at a high energy level because they can be quite taxing.  If already low on energy you should consider activating Flame Djinn's Haste and running away until you recover some energy.
 * Against enemy rangers you will want to maintain Weapon of Warding on yourself at most times. An interrupt on Mind Blast will wreck your energy.
 * Against assassin's and warrior's you will want to throw Weapon of Warding on whatever target they are pressuring or are likely to pressure. Be warned enemy assassins may carry Expose Defenses.
 * Select a single target to pressure and place Mark of Rodgort on them, then relentlessly cast Mind Blast on them. Throw Fireball and Liquid Flame liberally.
 * Keeping yourself and allies alive will have priority over killing the enemy in most situations. Be sure to mix Weapon of Warding and Wielder's Boon use in between Mind Blasts.
 * This character may have difficulty fighting alone against two or more enemies. If you cannot scare them out of your NPCs with degen call for a warrior or ranger to provide assistance.
 * While this character can kill enemy NPCs solo, it can be time consuming as archers take reduced damage from fire and will counter-act the burning with Troll Unguent. Consider splitting with a partner when splitting offensively with this character.  Doing so greatly speeds up your ability to kill NPCs.

Counters

 * Enchantment removal greatly impacts your energy if it removes Fire Attunement. Always attempt to cover Fire Attunement with Flame Djinn's Haste.
 * Skills that negate block or evade can be problematic. Expose Defenses on an assassin needs to be particularly watched for.
 * Interrupts (mainly Distracting Shot on Mind Blast, Mark of Rodgort, or Weapon of Warding) will severely impact your ability to function away from the group. Keep Weapon of Warding up if there is such a risk.
 * A lack of condition removal leaves you vulnerable to degen and deep wound. Burning Arrow rangers will attempt to degen you out while assassins will attempt to go for a quick kill, and this is especially true if they have interrupted Weapon of Warding.  Break off engagement early if they seem to be gaining the upper hand.

Variants

 * Wielder's boon can be dropped for Flesh of My Flesh if the build demands a hard Resurrect.
 * Mend Body and Soul is a popular heal often taken in place of Wielder's Boon. If the target is under the effects of a weapon spell Wielder's Boon is far more powerful than Mend Body and Soul.  However, Wielder's Boon becomes a weak heal if you do not cast it on a target under the effects of a weapon spell.  Thus if you are rotating your heals between multiple targets quite often, Mend Body and Soul may serve you better.
 * Freezing Gust may be used in place of Wielder's Boon for a snare.
 * Smoldering Embers can replace Fireball based on personal preference. Fireball has a small AoE, but requires line of sight.  Smoldering Embers is single target, doesn't require line of sight, and may trigger a burning condition as it ends (but doesn't often do so.)  They both have the same cost, damage, cast time, and cool down so it boils down to personal preference.