I didn't get to play with it too much....but I don't see myself using the spell too often. I will most likely get it but it takes too much skill for me to poison something at my level. I can poison an unyn reaver after two casts at 25, but reavers are below my level of hunting. After several casts of 25 on a stalker all that it would be left with was minor scuffings or something, no poison at all and the stalker's vit would go back up after a second or two. I will say that my magic isn't exactly all that great, I just hit 200 in PM and only have like 196 in harness so I can't pump that much mana into the spell.

I'll have to give it a try on Genies and a few other critters that are at my level. I can't wait to try the spell on pirates to see how well they hold up against it. It will be interesting to see what the mage rangers have to say about the spell.

Pathyn

Well, I just keep reminding myself I'm tert magic. I figured this is how powerful it'd be.

With 174 PM (3.41 PM/circle) and a prepare of 25 (about my max) got nightweaver unyn to extremely bad shape and then it died after the hornets left. (Couldn't see the poison though.)

Now, against a critter my level with same prepare as before, got a nightreaver unyn down to battered.

I really wish it was stackable, but happy there is no 'gesturing' Roundtime. (Unlike BB, GRIZ, and HB)

The only aspect really powerful with Swarm, for me, is the evasion penalty. :]

My thoughts..not as good as BB or HB, but better than GRIZ. Will use sparingly in combat.

-FF

PS Just died posting this. Yay.

My take on Swarm as it is now.

So far, one feeling comes to mind: pitiful, but with potential.

I know it is not going to be the spell it was, but it could have been atleast close. I mean. sheesh.

Went to Leucs to play with it abit. Results follow.

First Leuc: 30 mana cast.. scuffs only after two casts. Had to run away screaming because 6 Leucs entered my room before any vit damage was done on the 'effected' leuc.

Second Leuc: 3, count them...3, 30 mana casts. It finally died on the 3rd cast.

Odd thing is the pulses come rapid fire like.. get 4 pulses all at once within seconds of casting, (very little to no damage)..
Second set of pulses come only approx: 5 seconds after the first set of pulses, rapid fire again, only 2 effectual pulses that time the third pulse on that set was the Hornets buzzing away.

Second cast, same thing, Rapid fire pulses..little more damage and something very surprising and rather pleasing to see......

The hornets swarm around a giant black leucro, stinging it repeatedly in its chest!
The black leucro is barely stunned!
The hornets soon scatter, flying in every direction until they completely disperse.

It was stunned of all things! :faints:: still lived though, the stun came from the second set of rapid fire pulses.

Third cast, one set of rapid fire pulse..and

The mana you were holding contributes to the spell.
You are unable to keep some of the mana from leaking out of the spell pattern.
A circle of blue and green light radiates outward from you.
Almost immediately, hundreds of hornets explode from their hiding places, heeding your magical summons!
Though at first mildly confused, the swarm quickly begins to buzz around a giant black leucro!
>
The hornets swarm around a giant black leucro, stinging it repeatedly in its chest!
The black leucro is stunned!
The hornets swarm around a giant black leucro, stinging it repeatedly in its left leg!
A giant black leucro collapses to the ground, yelping like a lost puppy calling for its mother until finally it ceases all movement.
The hornets buzz angrily over a giant black leucro's corpse, then fly away.


I won't go into anymore details, it just keeps repeating itself anyways...

I'm going to reserve judgement completely till it is obvious that they will not tweak it anymore.

Sorry Rigby, but this needs some help. I myself understand it not being as it was prior to the magic redo, but it can atleast be effective to our standards. This spell does nothing, so far that I can see, to benefit this guild as was stated. I also see no compensation, as was stated, for taking away the room cast. If the spell does this little damage at a 30 mana cast, I would have hated to see what it did if the room affect were left in.

This is what? A second tier spell? I would know if we had a SPELL LIST! Think it's a bit tough for it to be at this teir? I do, IF it is.

But as I said, I have some faith and will reserve judgement.

Leucs are not below me, but they barely teach me my primary and very little evasion.

My magic is very low compared to others..

Primary : 142 Harness: 136 ooh and I have some TM...love having a Moonie for a Brother..and Best friend...and a cleric and and..heh ;-)

Well, I might have to eat some crow on the 'Not benefiting the guild' statement I made.

It DOES knock the suckers off balance quite well till they regain it when the swarm leaves.

Oh and I forgot to mention. I love the new messaging when the burst into the room.. :-D

Be well,

Motarra

>Does TM factor into our SvA spells?


I believe it does, but not for us. Lest that is what I remember reading. I just threw that out there.

They always wanna teach teaching!! I say NO!! give me TM!

Be well,

Motarra

hmmm..darnit I think I'm beginning to like it..::SIGHS::

It is really an Archers gift. Had a Leuc at incredibly balanced, decided to see how well it would knock him off balance. So I cast swarm (30 mana). He went, after the first pulse, steadily down to extremely imbalanced.

Then, me being the bright, quick, person I am ;-) thought, well, now, just let me get out my bow and play with them for a bit...

Before I could kill it with my bow..This happened..

A giant black leucro (1: extremely imbalanced) is facing you at missile range.
You (solidly balanced) are facing a giant black leucro (1) at missile range.
The black leucro teeters and nearly falls over.
>aim
You begin to target a giant black leucro.
>'not bad
The hornets swarm around a giant black leucro, stinging it repeatedly in its head!
The black leucro is dealt a vicious stun!
>
You say, "not bad"
>
The hornets swarm around a giant black leucro, stinging it repeatedly in its chest!
The hornets soon scatter, flying in every direction until they completely disperse.
look leuc
>You think you have your best shot possible now.
>

You see a giant black leucro (stunned).
The black leucro has cuts and bruises about the head, a severely swollen and deeply bruised left arm with odd protrusions under the skin compounded by deep cuts across the left arm, faint scuffing to the right leg, faint scuffing to the left leg, minor swelling and bruising in the chest area compounded by deep cuts across the chest area.
The black leucro is bleeding with widespread discoloration in the left arm, slightly from the left arm and badly from the chest.
It is wearing nothing!
It is carrying nothing!

Got to LOVE that vicious stun!

Be well,

Motarra, starting to consider this spell..But only if it does the same to Genies..heading there now.

Here is a 40 mana cast on a croc, which says we are swimming when we move, so I am guessing it is in water:

The hornets swarm around a blue-belly crocodile, stinging it repeatedly in its left leg!
The hornets swarm around a blue-belly crocodile, stinging it repeatedly in its left leg!
>
The hornets swarm around a blue-belly crocodile, stinging it repeatedly in its chest!
>
* At a severe disadvantage, a blue-belly crocodile leaps, its teeth bared in a frothing rage at you. You dodge.
[You're solidly balanced and in dominating position.]
>
The hornets swarm around a blue-belly crocodile, stinging it repeatedly in its abdomen!
The blue-belly crocodile is stunned!

By the way, the 40 mana cast did kill the croc. If you want a spell that effects the target's balance I would still go with HB since it is much more effective.

Naturn

40 mana cast. Me never tried a spell that high before. May hurt me, or me poop me leathers. hehehe. Well at least it went to the chest.

More testing on the new spell to be done.

Takei

Ack, sorry, Motarra. :(

You weren't the only Ranger that just got frozen, judging from the green names scrolling over my screen.

Should have only taken a minute, based on what I've seen, not 5 for the poison to do its worse. Hard to figure this poison out, without being able to see its effects prior to death.

Folcwyn

I don't know which stats matter in success formula for sva spells, so here's all of mine:

Strength : 26 Reflex : 24
Agility : 24 Charisma : 15
Discipline : 25 Wisdom : 26
Intelligence : 26 Stamina : 24

Primary Magic: 121
Harness Ability: 131

Gargs are about as agile, snowbeasts I think somewhat less agile.

General impression:

Again, like BB, this doesn't seem worth it cast at low mana (15).

Got 4 stings, got snowbeast and garg to slightly battered, and at most slightly off balanced.

For my style of fighting, that doesn't do much if at all for me. With my bow being one of my primary, and in fact the one I rely on to dispatch things when I'm overwhelmed, the balance difference here isn't significant enough to make much of a difference.

With my ME, again, I don't see that making much of a difference.

Maybe it's just me, but I would like to see spells that aren't so mana intensive. While the spells (BB, Sw) are still castable with lower mana, the effects at that level is pretty much negligible, imo. I don't see a point for a low min prep if you want to cast it at 20 minimum anyway (that's not a call to up the min prep btw, more like a request to show some effects without throwing a bunch of mana into it).

On the flip side, the affects seem to pick up nicely at 20 mana. Balance seems to drop quickly, same as vitality (unless that's the poison I'm seeing). The stuns are very nice.

Though I just realized I'd still have to try it on creatures more my level.

So perhaps the effects of the spell just doesn't pick up early enough? Still need to do more casting at higher mana levels to get an overall picture.

And I second the earlier request to be able to see the poison. I'm not even sure I've seen any poison yet.

<Great spell! I do miss the mass swarm with the help of sop but can live without it. Just happy to see a decent offensive ranger spell finally. Any reason it's not stackable anymore?

Thanks,
Dread>

If you say swarm is a great spell or a bad spell, it would be nice if you would also say why, so that we can share in your feelings. I agree the spell is a great spell, that is if it is given enough power to be effective or if it is stackable with enough cummulative force to give it effectiveness. If the spells value is in damaging the target's balance, HB is a better spell, so why would we use swarm? As I understand it, the strength of swarm is supposed to be in its poison, the effects of which are very difficult to see at present, and perhaps the distraction, which I can't see. I would like to see more power in the spell and see the spell stackable.

Naturn

>>If the spells value is in damaging the target's balance, HB is a better spell, so why would we use swarm?<<

This is true although only on certain critters. HB is useless against anything that can cut right through the webs like Adan'f, Geni, etc.. So in those cases swarm would be a better spell to throw them off balance.

Sevo